


Cookies for the Road

by Gelflings_in_a_Tardis



Series: Treats for Traveling [1]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: A little smutty, All-Knowing Balin, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Angst with a Happy Ending, Awkward Conversations, Awkward Flirting, BAMF Bilbo Baggins, Bilbo Baggins Destroys the One Ring, Dwalin Is A Softie, Dwalin Loves Cookies, Dwalin has a hard time with words, Dwalin might be in denial, Emotionally Constipated Thorin, F/M, Families of Choice, Female Bilbo Baggins, Fíli and Kíli Are Little Shits, Hobbits move fast when they fall in love, Nori is sweet on the inside, Past Abuse, Protective Dwalin, Sassy Hobbits, The Company to the rescue!, Thorin Has No Sense Of Direction, Timeline Shenanigans, Yavanna is meddling, past rejection, who am I kidding it will probably be a lot smutty once we get rolling.
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-14
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2019-02-14 16:07:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 115,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13011342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gelflings_in_a_Tardis/pseuds/Gelflings_in_a_Tardis
Summary: Dwalin has never seen anything so delicate and perfect as the sweet thing in front of him. Bluebell came in a close second, right after the tray of cookies she was holding.Dwalin falls for Blue's cookies first and Blue shortly there after. He is firmly in denial that his Heart Lode is a feisty, courageous, sarcastic, kind, loyal Hobbit. Once everyone finds out though they do their damnedest to make him admit it and that the little Hobbit is head over heels for him even if she won't admit it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I won't be retelling the entire story but kinda bouncing along. I'll still hit the major points and throwing in some fluffy moments too.  
> I also love the idea of a Go Get Em Bilbo that knows what she wants and endeavors to get it. Poor Dwalin won't know what hit him! 
> 
> Italics is inner monologue  
> Bold underline is Khuzdul that I could not find words for.  
> Bold will be traditional Khuzdul  
> Underline will be Sindarin.

Dwalin surveyed all the little homes set into the lush green hills as he made his way up Bag shot Lane towards where he could see the minute glow of a tiny rune.   
He had seen Hobbit homes before but it had been from afar and moving at a fast pace on pony back. He had thought were tiny houses with grass on the roof and was now pleasantly surprised that they were in fact built into the hill side!   


_Can't be bad folk when they live underground similar to us.  
  
_ He knew they were a fair people that just didn't barter much since they didn't much aside from what they grew with their own hands so the Dwarrow didn't have much to do with the Halflings.   
  
The setting sun bathed scenery in shades of orange, black and red while the Vala Varda painted the sky in streaks of pink and purple with silvery stars beginning to peek through.   
An enticing smell reached his nostrils as he studied the beauty of the sky pulling his attention back up the lane towards the more pronounced glow of the little rune that he could now see graced a almost emerald green door. He cocked his bald head studying the color closer in the waning light. The little creature that lived here had probably been going more for grass green rather than a jewel tone.   
The delicious aroma was even stronger here on the stoop of the round door, he was practically salivating as he pounded on the door ignoring the little knocker placed in the middle. He was more likely to break it in his great hand rather then get a decent knock out of it.   
  
"I swear Lobelia if this is another match making attempt I am going to chase you down the lane with my skillet!" came a high pitched shout from inside.   
  
Dwalin couldn't help the look of surprise on his face as the door swung open letting a wall of that delectable smell hit him square in the face as he took in the petite, curvy,  very female form that belonged to the voice.   
  
_I thought Hobbits were nonviolent?  
__  
__Mahal be praised look at those!_    
  
Dwalin had never seen anything so beautiful as the tray of steaming cookies the little lass held in her oven mitted hand.   
  
"Dwalin Fundinson, at your service." he rumbled bowing to the hobbitess.    


Large green eyes seemed to dominate her face as she squeaked "Bluebell Baggins, at yours and your families!" stepping to the side to allow him entrance into the foyer.  
"OUCH! Excuse me I need to set these down somewhere." she turned with the cookies and panic seized his gut at the thought of not getting to try at least one of the little golden discs.   
"Let me, Mistress Hobbit." as he swooped the pan from her grip with his bare hand.   
"Wait! You'll burn yourself!" she cried trying to give him the oven mitt as he carried the pan down the hall stealing one of the gloriously warm cookies as he went.  
"Nonsense lass. This is barely warm! Where do you want me to set this?"  
"Are...are you eating my cookies?! You could at least ask first!" she scolded him inspecting the tray where he sat it on her counter.   
"Those were to be for tea time tomorrow! What made you think it was alright to just help yourself without asking?" she scowled up at him impatiently tapping her foot waiting for his answer.   
  
_She is magnificent!  
__Yavanna knew what she was doing when she made this one.  
  
_ He couldn't help the smirk that twitched at the corner of his mouth as he tried to swallow his mouth full of hot cookie to answer Bluebell.   
  
Thank Mahal he was saved from having to answer the tiny temptress by a loud knock on the round door.   
She headed back down the hall, throwing over her shoulder "I expect an answer when I return Master Dwarf!"   
  
_So FEISTY! Who knew my Heart Lode would have a temper to match my own!  
  
__Wait a minute... What did I just call her?_

 _My Heart Lode is a Hobbit?  I barely know her! How can she be my Heart Lode?  
  
Bah its the cookies talking.   
  
  
_ He couldn't stop the grin that creased his face as she came flouncing  back down that hall with his snowy haired older brother close behind her.   
"Brother!" they exclaimed grasping forearms and knocking their forehead together before hugging tightly. The resounding "Crack" from the headbutt had caused the small Lady to squeak in surprise and he could see her trying to look for injury to his forehead veiled by her gorgeous black fans of eyelashes.   
  
He stole two more cookies from the tray by him and gave one to Balin while ignoring the annoyed huff that came from behind him. He knew she was waiting on his answer but he couldn't come up with one that didn't sound like an indecent proposal or lewd comment. The cookies tasted like they were made by a Valar, sweet, gooey, melt in his mouth delicious. A small noise escaped him as he savored the last bite; a noise from his left made him crack an eye at his brother who was still holding his cookie.   
"What, Nadad? Eat the cookie. It's amazing."   
  
Balin smiled as he took a bite humming in appreciation as he chewed. "Aye they're good but I've never seen you relish food before like that. Normally you inhale everything but the cutlery and are done before everyone else. But Amad always did say you'd find your one with your stomach."   
  
Any retort Dwalin could come up with was lost in the Bluebell exclaiming "Here now that's my mother's Glory Box! DO NOT SCRAP MUD OFF ON IT!"   
  
"Sorry Master Boggins!" 

Irritation rolled of her reply "Its Baggins!"  
  
Dwalin rolled his eyes as Kili came popping into the dining room followed closely by Fili moving at more sedate pace.   
"Master Dwalin! Have you been here long?"  
"Fee, look there are cookies!"   
  
An intense urge seized him at the thought of sharing "HIS" cookies with the Princes. He wanted to hoard them away and only bring them out when no was around to share Bluebell and then  _kiss the crumbs from her luscious lips... WHOA where did that come from!  
  
_ He immediately pulled back from that thought caravan before he got himself into trouble.   
  
"Lads help me move things around in here. We'll not all fit otherwise."   
"Now see here, Master Dwalin! Who gave you permission to rearrange my dining room?" came a irritated tone from near his sternum.   
  
He looked down to see her glaring up at him; anger making her eyes flash in the candle light like rare Aventurine and completely mesmerizing him. He had never seen that color anywhere aside from the actual stone which happened to be one of his favorites it was even set in the hilt of one of his daggers. ( _Yes he is a Dwarf  with a favorite stone)  
  
  
_ He opened his mouth with a witty retort on the tip of his tongue when yet another knock sounded from the round portal and she bounced away incensed.   
"Master Dwalin what is going on that you would tolerate the Halfling speak to you like?" inquired Fili.   
He leveled his steel gaze at the younger Dwarf "She is half of nothing. She is our hostess and a Hobbit. Show her your respect lad or I'll be telling Thorin when he arrives."   
The Prince's blond eyebrows hiked at the threat of his uncle and wilted under the glower Dwalin had aimed at him.   
  
 Dwalin was pushing the chairs in as he heard the thud of what sounded like many bodies hitting the wood floor and hoped Bluebell wasn't at the bottom of the heap.   
"Gandalf! What are all the dwarves doing in my smial? I am not prepared for guests!" her voice echoed hotly down the hall.  
The wizard's reply was lost in the commotion of all the new dwarrow taking their seats in the dining room and a few were raiding the pantry and whatever she had in the kitchen. He slid the cookies behind him as he watched the others devour what looked like most of the lass's reserves and he felt guilt begin to settle in his gut that he wasn't doing anything to help.   
  
_What is going on?  
  
__This isn't me. I don't hoard cookies or feel guilty about food nor do I fantasize about running my hands through honey colored ringlets and kissing rose colored lips- MAHAL'S beard what is with me! Bluebell is not a dwarf! She's a Hobbit; a curvaceous, voluptuous, fiery, golden temptress that I would love to run my hands all over her porcelain skin and see what colors I can make those green eyes turn with passion- Fucking really?  
  
Is there a cold stream near here?   
  
  
_ He was never so happy to hear a resounding knock at the door then at that moment. Anything to break his speculations on what the hostess would be like in bed before he shamed himself in front of everyone. This was wholly unlike him to be having thoughts of that nature; every 50 years he might seek someone to ease the ache of prolonged abstinence normally accompanied with copious drinking. But Dwarrowdams were incredibly rare so it was usually with another Dwarrow... Thorin, if he was honest. They would sit together drinking whatever was available and then fell into bedroll together; awaking the next morning slightly sore and with massive hangovers.   
Bluebell stirred something in him he had thought was long dead. He had not thought about the company of a female since before they had reached Ered Luin; the surprise was unsettling and it made it hard for him to concentrate.   


        ~~~~~  
Bluebell couldn't believe the number of dwarves that had invaded her home. 12 dwarves all crammed into her small home; 12 Hobbits would have been no problem but the dwarves were all so much bigger than she!   
The one that rattled her most was the big bloke that showed up first and started stealing her cookies while they were still piping hot!  
He didn't even ask!  
Just helped himself and made noises that did something peculiar to her insides.   
_Wonder what else I could do to make him make sounds like that?  
  
__Slowly feed him my famous raspberry cookies and taste their sweetness on his lips..._  A shiver shot down her spine and raised goose flesh on her arms. _  
  
Hold on!   
   
__Sweet Yavanna's toes what was that?  
  
__Nooope not thinking about a silver eyed dwarf like that.  
  
Just NOPE.  
  
_ She shook her curly head and forced her ears to not show her mood as she bustled to answer the imperious sounding knock coming from her little green door.   
She swung the heavy door open to reveal a regal looking dwarf with silver streaked hair and pretty blue eyes.   
_I suppose he could be attractive in a certain light.  
__But he's nothing compared to Dwalin.  
_  
She studied his thick locks waiting for him to either enter her home or introduce himself and found her thoughts wandering to a dwarf with a tattooed scalp instead of a braided on.   
_I wonder if his tattoos continue under his armor?  
__Could slowly peel off his tunic and trace the designs with my mouth.  
  
__Wait a bloody minute!  
  
Sweet Mother I just met him!  
  
I just met him and I'm not even sure I like him!   
_  
"This is Thorin Oakenshield son of Thrain, son Thror, King Under the Mountain and leader of this Quest." Gandalf's smooth voice brought her back to the present Dwarf standing now in her foyer looking down his pointed beak at her.   
"Are you sure she's a Burglar, Tharkun? She looks more like a grocer. Tell me what's your weapon of choice?"  
She felt her eyes go wide at his acidic tone. "Excuse me? Weapon? Is it a dwarven custom to immediately insult your host upon entering their home?"    
She put a hand on her be-skirted hip and raised an inquiring eyebrow at the King.   
If glares could have killed her for being contrary, he would have done her in right there.   
"Tharkun I think you are mistaken. There is no way someone as soft as she would ever survive where we're going. She'll surely get someone killed. And we don't need a camp follower."   
She felt her spine stiffen at his dismissive tone and her Took side roared to life at the insinuation that she would be a burden.   
Before Gandalf could stop her, she jumped forward grabbing Sir High and Mighty by his short beard and pulled him down to her level before latching on to one of his ears like he was one of her wayward little cousins.   
"I'll have you know you insulting, clot headed fool that I am quite skilled with a straight razor" she growled low in his ear, holding near a cuff that was pierced through so he couldn't pull away "You ever insult me like that again and you'll wake up as hairless as the day you were born."  
She heard a collective gasp from behind her and it was hard to hide the small smirk that graced her lips when she saw the fear in Thorin's eyes. She released her hold on his ear, turned and retreated to her kitchen to try and calm her racing heart; the Baggin's side of her was trying to scold her for bad manners but he had just made her so mad!  
She felt a smaller flutter of giddiness building up inside her as she passed Dwalin, his silver eyes glittering with what looked like suppressed mirth or it could have been anger for her somewhat attack on his King.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Dwalin was gob smacked at what he had witnessed. He had never seen someone chastise Thorin for his rudeness before aside from Dis, Thorin's younger sister.   
Bluebell had been magnificent in her reprimanding Thorin for basically insulting everything about her.   
  
"If I say she is a Burglar than a Burglar she is!" thundered Tharkun at a pouting Thorin. The Wizard seemed even taller than before as his power grew around him.   
  
Dwalin shook his tattooed head before turning to see where the lass had disappeared. They had shared a look of what he thought was good humor but she had paled near the end and he was worried that she thought he was angry with her. Honestly Thorin needed to be brought down a peg or two and he was just sorry that he wasn't the one to do it like usual.   
  
She had her back to the door and looked like she was kneading something on her counter top as he ducked through the door. It gave him a moment to appreciate her backside, shapely ankles and calves, and the spill of honey colored curls down her back.   
He opened his mouth a couple times to say something but nothing sounded right in his head.   
"Excuse me, Ma'am. What should I do with my plate?" came from behind Dwalin breaking his revere and causing Bluebell to whip around in surprise to catch him staring at her. Her cheeks immediately flushed a fetching pink that went all the way to the tips of her adorable pointed ears.   
"I'll take it Master..."  
"Ori, Ma'am"   
She offered the younger dwarf a shy smile and Dwalin immediately wanted to bodily throw him from the domicile.   
_What? Why would I want to toss a youngling?  
  
__Ori is a good lad. So what if she smiled at him instead of me. Its not like she's my One or anything.  
  
_ He snorted at the thought before leveling his steel glare at the lad causing him to rush back into the dining room to the safety of his brothers.  
  
"Was that really necessary?" she asked in a lilting voice studying him in from where she worked.   
"What?" he felt a blush trying to creep up his head but he was determined to fight it back.   
"He's just a lad. You didn't need to glare at him so for getting you caught ogling me."  
   
_Shit  
  
_ "I wasn't ogling you!"   
"Oh really? And why is that?" she was looking at him quite intently now.

    
_Dammit_  .

  
He blurted out the first thing that came to mind "Because I would never ogle you!"   
_Fuck me._

_That's the best I could come up with?!_

_  
_ Hurt flashed through her green eyes and he noticed her ears drooped a little as she pummeled the dough she was working with even harder. "Well good to know."   
_Mahal weeps.  
  
What do I say now?   
  
_ "Well you're not even my type see. I could never ogle you."  
   
_Open mouth, insert foot.  
  
What the fuck did I just say!?   
  
_ He was dismayed to see tears begin to gather in her lovely eyes and her ears drooped even more the like the petals of a dying flower.   
  
_What did I just do?_  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bluebell wasn't even sure why the brawny warrior's words made her feel like weeping " _Well you're not even my type, see. I could never ogle you."  
  
__Well fuck you too.  
  
_

_It's alright Blue. You'll show them how wrong they are about you._

_You'll show that bald, thick skulled, overgrown, eyes like quick silver, handsome as all get out Dwarf that he can't hurt my feelings._

_  
_  
The pity she saw on his face as she tried to sniff the tears away was enough to make her want to punch him right in his bearded face.   
"Well if you're finished putting salt in the wound your King gave me I'll be taking my leave."as she shouldered past him and went out into the dining room where they were deep in discussion about something that sounded ominous.

 

"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain as it has been foretold." the white haired dwarf with a tin horn informed all. "'When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end."'

 

_Hold up. Gandalf never mentioned a beast._

"Excuse me, but what beast?"  


"Well that would be in reference to Smaug the Terrible." the dwarf wearing a floppy winged hat answered her. She was pretty sure his name was Bofur and he was tied to the fat one that ate a whole wheel of cheese and the slightly terrifying one with the ax head lodged in his forehead. He had been attempting to flirt with her all evening and she had been deflecting his advances expertly but after the hurt feeling inflicted by Dwalin she might engage in some harmless flirting.

"... Calamity of our Age. Airborne fire breathing, teeth like razors, claws like meat hooks: extremely fond of precious metals. Your hair would probably catch the big lizard's eye with it's gilded glory."

   
She couldn't help the blush that highlighted her cheeks "Yes, I know what a dragon is."

_Even as sheltered as we are we've heard of the Dragon.  
  
How backwoods do they think we are?_

_Or is it just me that they think is sheltered?_

  
A shout of excitement brought her back to present as Kili exclaimed "And you forget we have a wizard in our company! Gandalf will have killed hundreds of dragons in his time!"

"Well now" Gandalf seemed to be floundering as Blue snorted into her cup of ale "I wouldn't say_"

"How many then?" the dwarf with an extremely complicated hairdo of silver braids _~Dori was it?_ ~ asked the stammering Istari.

"What?"

"How many dragons have you killed?"

_I highly doubt he's killed any._

_He had a hard enough time killing that big spider when it invaded my cellar. I can't imagine him killing anything as huge as a dragon._

The dwarves had erupted into much shouting when Gandalf hadn't answered with only Thorin McRudeface sitting silently at the head of her table. Thankfully he seemed to reach the end of his patience with the noise right when she was considering kicking them all out of her smial. Dwalin was standing to the side of him and looked as though he was trying to catch her eye but she refused.

"Silence!"

She giggled as she could the audible click of mouths snapping shut.

"If we have read these signs do you not think others will have as well? Rumors have begun to spread, the dragon Smaug has not been seen in sixty years. Eyes look east to the mountain, assessing, wondering, and weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor? Du Bekar!"

She had to applaud his ability to give an impassioned speech and get all the dwarves inspired to cheer for the reclaiming, their objections falling to the side as they clamored to get going. Even Dwalin seemed to get caught in the excitement of it all though not as much as the others he still was cheering.

"You forget the front gate is sealed. There is no way into the Mountain." reminded Dwalin's brother looking at the Monarch with a "you knew this" expression that seemed to censure his excitement.  
 

_So someone can actually keep him in line?_

_Sounds like this quest is over before it even begins_ she mused.  


The rustling of paper being laid on her table caused her ears to perk up in curiosity.

"A map! I love maps" she stated sliding from her perch to over in front of Gandalf to get a better look at the ancient parchment "I have quite the collection, you know."

Thorin looked at her with surprise written on his face in place of what she thought was a permanent scowl; It made him look considerably younger as his blue eyes bore into her green ones and she thought she could see a glimmer of hope in their azure depths along with what looked like the shadows of doubt and sorrow. The moment was broken when Gandalf produced a wrought iron key from within the folds of his grey robes.

She caught a glimpse of Dwalin over Thorin's shoulder and his expression was thunderous.

_Now what is his problem?  
  
He's plainly stated that he's not interested in me so what does he care if another pays attention?_

  
"What's that written up there in the corner Gandalf?" she asked pointing out should have been the legend of the map but it seemed to be missing things and the rest was written in something she had never seen before.

"Runes. The speak of a hidden passage to the lower halls." he answered.

"There's another way in!" cheered Kili punching the air and narrowly missing his brother's ear.

"If we can find it, but dwarf doors are invisible when closed." Gandalf sighed heavily and Blue patted his hand out of habit. "The answer lies hidden somewhere on this map, and I do not have the skill to find it, but there are others in Middle Earth that can  


Blue's mind immediately jumped to Uncle Elrond, her late mother's dear friend the elf lord. If she was a betting lady her money would be on the Elves being able to divine whatever secrets the map held. But her memory served that Dwarves and Elves do not get along and trying to get them to see each other was like pulling teeth.

"The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth and no small amount of courage, but if we are careful and  clever, I believe that it  can be done" declared the Grey One.   
"That's why we need a burglar!" chimed the little one with the bowl hair cut  _~Ori if memory serves. Dori's little brother~  
_ "A good one too." Blue agreed as she leaned to study the ancient map closer "An expert I'd imagine"   
  
_Oh Bollocks this is what Gandalf has volunteered me for.  
  
__As sure as Yavanna makes little green apples in the spring time he's signed me up as a burglar.  
  
__I'm gonna kick him.  
  
_ "Hear that lads, she says she's an expert!" Oin announced to the cheering group.  
  
_I am not!  
  
__Ok so I nicked some mushrooms that one time  
  
__And that pie from Aunt Primrose  
  
__And those carrots from Farmer Maggot  
  
__And my silverware but Lobelia stole it first!  
  
_ "I'm afraid I don't see Master Baggins as burglar material." sighed Balin stroking his snowy beard.   
Bluebell felt her ears begin to grow hot.   
"Aye, the wild is no place for gentle folk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves." Dwalin added.   
She was sure now that her ears were going to set her hair alight with how hot they were and she knew her eyes were narrowing at the offending parties.   
_I have never been so insulted by such a group of pig headed males!  
  
_ "ENOUGH!" roared Gandalf before she could bite out a snide retort that might have insulted their mothers, their beards and suggested they do something anatomically impossible. Power grew around the wizard making him seem even bigger than he already was and Blue seriously started to wonder if he was going to go thru her ceiling. "If I say Bluebell Baggins is a burglar than a burglar she is!"   
But just like that the moment was over after everyone had entered into a stunned silence while she continued to glare daggers at the brothers that had decided to offend her the most.   
_Just they wait.  
  
__I'll show them. I'll save their asses so many times they won't ever be able to repay me.  
  
__And I'll rub that big rock heads perfect nose in the fact I don't need him to take care of me!  
  
__I can take care of MYSELF!  
  
_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Dwalin was pretty sure the pretty little lass was plotting to do something horrible to him and his brother from the way she was glaring at them, her ears laid back and the most interesting shade of red. He was almost positive that if he didn't learn to keep his mouth shut he was going to wake up one morning missing what was left of his hair.   
  
"You asked me to find a fourteenth member of this company and I have chosen Master Baggins. There's a lot more to her than meets than appearances suggest, and she has a great deal more to offer than any of you know. Including herself."   
He saw her quirk an amber eyebrow at that statement and could only imagine what she was thinking.   
_She really is a spitfire.  
  
__The Valar gave it their all when they made her.  
  
__She'll make a fine wife to wrangle sons for someone some day  
  
_ That thought hit his gut like iron ore and a deep sadness followed at the thought of her having children with someone else but he shook it off as just his want of children and turned his attention back to the proceedings.   
  
"You must trust me on this." Gandalf pleaded to Thorin and Dwalin knew his friend had caved by the set of his shoulders.   
"Very well, we'll do it your way." Thorin relented "Give her the contract."  
  
Balin had a disagreeable look on his face as he reached into his robes "Are you sure, Thorin? I'm sure there must be someone more suited than a female-"  
Bluebell cut him off snarling "You'll not find anyone better suited to this, you great puffed up toad! Give. Me. The. Contract."  
Dwalin had never seen his older brother obey someone just like that but his brother handed over the contract to the little hobbit to read and then turned to his brother **"You are in so much trouble if she is really your Heart Lode."  
  
** He was pretty sure he wouldn't have been more stunned if Kili had thrown snow down his tunic again; he only prayed no one else had heard Balin. With the way Thorin's head snapped around he knew that it was too much to hope and that he was going to be teased mercilessly by his oldest friend.   
**"What are you talking about? How could SHE be my Heart Lode? She's not even a Dwarf. I think you're too deep in your cups, brother."**  
  
Bluebell's voice cut off their exchange "Funeral Expenses?"  
"Oh aye, he'll melt the flesh right off your bones in the blink of an eye." answered a cheery Bofur who then had the audacity to wink at her!   
She paled at bit at that statement Dwalin noticed; all the blood leaving her ears and going from her tan cheeks.   
"You alright, lass?" asked Balin smirking like a jackass.   
Dwalin started moving around the table towards her even though she was waving a hand at everyone "I just feel a bit faint."  
He was almost to her when Bofur stood and leaned in towards her making Dwalin think the miner was going to help her. "Think furnace with wings."   
Now she was pale to her decolletage but that didn't stop her from trying to shoot daggers are Bofur as she swayed a little on her feet.   
"Flash of light, searing pain, and then poof, you're nothing more than a pile of ash."   
He was right behind her when she looked at Bofur said "I hate you." and fainted straight into his arms.   
He picked her up easily, honestly expecting her to weigh more but he could almost manage her frame with one big arm. He turned slightly to face Gandalf, cuffing Bofur up the back of the head as he went "Where should I take her?"   
The wizard rubbed a hand over his tired face and pointed down the hall "Her library is the second door on the right. She has a couch you can place her on in there."   
"I'll make her a cup of restorative tea!" declared Dori dragging his brothers behind him into the kitchen.   
  
He made his way down the rounded hall and stepped into a room that would have enthralled his brother and Ori; it was floor to ceiling books, there were stacks of books on all the available surfaces, books setting open on her desk and where there wasn't shelves she had framed maps taking up residence.   
She curled into his chest not minding the straps and armor there. He had thought she was tan till he had saw her flawless skin against his tattooed, weathered hide. Her hair up close was even more remarkable; he had never seen hair curled like that and each hair seemed to glow on its own until her curls shone with an inner light. Her freckles reminded him even more of star dust up close as they were scattered across the bridge of her nose and cheek bones. They made him think of watching the stars at night while he was traveling here.  
_I hope I get the chance to show her the stars.  
  
__Hopefully Bofur hasn't ruined it all with his "furnace with wings" comment.  
  
_ She smelled of sweet things and something vaguely spicy as he laid her down on the red couch facing the fire place and it made his blood sing. He sat in the chair near the couch and turned so he could watch her; he hadn't even noticed when the door opened for Thorin stepped inside. "So what's this news that this spirited little hobbit is your heart lode?"  
"Balin is full of it, that's all."  
Thorin looked unconvinced "Really? Since when has your brother ever been wrong about something like this?"   
Dwalin shook his head "He has to be wrong this time. What could I have ever done to deserve  **her** as my Heart Lode?" 

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Belated Birthday present from me to all of you lol  
> My husband gave me some me time today so I spent it writing! 
> 
> I went with the book ages instead of the movie! I love the idea of Ori being older than he looks with Fili and Kili trying to treat him as a little cousin.
> 
> **I did some slight revisions after my husband beta'd for me.

Bluebell woke up in her study and for a moment thought she fallen asleep reading again before she spotted Gandalf sitting in the only chair in her study that could hold him.   
A strange hum made her ears twitch towards the sitting room and she swung her feet to the floor while she stretched; Gandalf handed her a cup of cool tea.   
"Are you alright, my dear?"   
"I'm fine" she waved off his concern, ears still twitching as the hum seemed to rise in pitch "What is that sound?"   
The grey wizard stood and motioned her to follow him into the dark hall while holding a long finger to his lips.   
She stayed in the shadows and watched the dwarves all gathered round her fire place; Thorin was silhouetted in the light from the flames which was striking but she couldn't stop her eyes being drawn to the tattooed scalp of a bigger dwarf.   
She was astonished when Thorin opened his mouth and a gorgeous baritone came rolling out. The others joined him with equally strong vocals but she could feel Dwalin's bass in her bones and the poignancy of their song moved her to tears.  
  
_Far over the Misty Mountains cold,  
_  
_To dungeons deep and caverns old,  
_  
_We must away, ere break of day,  
_  
_To claim our long-forgotten gold.  
  
The dwarves of yore made mighty spells  
  
While hammers fell like ringing bells,  
  
In places deep, where dark things sleep,   
  
In the hollow halls beneath the fell.  
  
For ancient king and elvish lord  
  
There many a gleaming, golden hoard,  
  
They shaped and wrought, and light they caught  
  
To hide in gems on hilt of sword.  
  
On silver necklaces they strung,  
  
The flowering stars, on crowns they hung,_

 _the dragon fire, on twisted wire  
  
they meshed the light of the sun and moon.   
  
  
_Her mind supplied the images for what she thought such elegance would look like and she could imagine Dwalin adorned in the trappings fitting his station though they would be in silver to match his mercurial eyes.   
  
_What is going on with me?  
  
__Why can't I get him from my mind!  
  
He's a rude, uninterested, cookie stealing, mountain of amazing muscle... Yavanna's toes.   
  
  
  
_ The song hit a new mournful note.  
  
_The pines were roaring on the height  
  
__The wind was moaning in the night,  
  
The fire was red, its flaming spread,   
  
The trees like torches blazed with light.  
  
The bells were ringing in the dale  
  
and men looked with faces pale  
  
The dragons ire, more fierce than fire  
  
Laid low their towers and houses frail.  
  
The mountain smoked beneath the moon  
  
The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom  
  
They fled the hall, to dying fall  
  
Beneath his feet, beneath the moon.   
  
  
_ Her heart clenched at the sadness in their voices and at that moment she knew she would go, she would help them reclaim their home. Her pulse quickened as she began to make a list of everything she needed to pack for this adventure; she had never traveled so far before but her Mother's tales gave her a good idea.   
The notes drifted away as though it was carried by the smoke rings that Gandalf blew and she quickly went to him in the silence.   
"I'll do it."   
A smile creased his ancient face "Really, my girl. Are you sure?"   
She nodded "Can you promise I'll come back?"   
The smile diminished as he shook his head "I cannot. You might not want to return and if you do you will not be the same hobbit you left as."   
She shivered at the prophetic tone his voice took on.  
"I'll still do it."   
"Excellent, Master Boggins! See Uncle, you were wrong about our host!" cried Kili  
"Balin, you're closer hit him for me."   
  
  
Balin followed her into the library and whistled in appreciation at her collection. "Most impressive, Master Baggins. Tell me have you actually read all of these?"   
She shot him a dark look as she went to her desk positioned in front of the only window.   
Balin took the moment to study the Hobbit- _lass?  
It was female wasn't she?   
  
Dwalin was known to enjoy the company of males so that was no help.   
  
Could have sworn Tharkun had said 'she' and 'mistress' but then switched to 'master'  
  
Is it rude to ask?   
  
It threatened to shave Thorin, I think I'll wait and see.   
  
  
_ Balin hummed with his hands behind his back as Blue signed her name across the bottom of the contract and returned it to his possession. He thought he saw breasts under her shawl but the glare he received for staring stopped his perusal.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"You're joking."   
"No I am not, Master Baggins. Get on the pony."   
"No thank you. I'm happier walking."   
"We have a long way to go and you'll be riding Daisy."   
**Would someone help her so we can get going?  
** "HEY! P-PUT me down! F-K-DWALIN? UNHAND ME!"   
"Sure thing Blue."   
"I didn't mean on the bloody horse!"   
"Pay up, Oin! i told you Dwalin would make her swear before we left!"   
**whole group laughs while Bluebell sniffs and ignores them shifting in her saddle to find a semi comfortable seat.   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Dwalin watched her on the other side of the camp, setting up her bedroll and moving gingerly as she went to assist Bombur with dinner.   
_She walks like she's been rode hard and put away wet.  
  
_ She had finally on the 3rd day seemed to have found her seat aboard the pony, rolling her hips with the gait. Dwalin had almost knocked himself out twice on low branches while riding behind her; her hips moved like she had ridden things not as wide as a pony. Thorin and the Princes had had a good laugh at him after he had whacked his bald head on the second branch; matters only got worse when they stopped for lunch and Blue insisted on cleaning the scrap for him.   
No matter where he sat she ended up pressing some part of herself against him while crooning softly about his poor scalp. All the blood had left his head when she signed softly in his ear and traced one of the designs the went down his neck.   
He had tried to discreetly hide the growing bulge in his breeches with his traveling cloak wadded up in his lap but Thorin missed nothing.   
**I could help you with that later when we're on watch together?**

 **Na, I'm fine.** they shared a stunned look after the words slipped from his lips. He had never turned Thorin down before; King he might be but he was amazing at sucking cock and Dwalin had never before let the opportunity slip past him for Thorin to swallow him down.   
"What the matter, Master Dwalin? Are you in pain?" came the Hobbit's soft voice near the shell of his pierced ear.   
He suddenly found it very difficult to swallow as her scent seemed to wrap around him and made him ache as his cock pressed into the laces of his pants.   
"N-no, its... its just that I c-can smell you."   
She drew back with a hiss like a scalded cat and he immediately missed her soft form pressing against him.   
"Well I never! You...you cabbage head!" she stomped away and didn't stop till she was out of his line sight.   
Wheezing came from beside him and he turned to see his brother and Thorin laughing so hard they couldn't breath with tears streaming down their faces as they supported each other.   
On the other side of him Gloin begrudgingly handed over some coins to Nori while Ori chuckled with his sketch book open drawing the whole situation.  
_I wonder if I can convince him to burn that one?  
  
  
__Of all the pompous things to complain about "I can smell you" well let me tell you tater-head you don't smell like a bed of rose either.  
  
__I DO NOT SMELL!  
_  
_Why was I even trying to be nice to him.  
  
WHAT is wrong with me?   
  
_ Bluebell stomped away from the camp so insulted she couldn't even see straight; she stomped through the underbrush searching for something that she could vent her frustrations on.  
"Ya know, Master Boggins" came a familiar voice from behind her "You could always get even with Master Dwalin for his slights towards you."  
"Even the playing field if you will." offered a second voice.   
She turned to see the two princes behind her, smiling devilishly at her. She couldn't resist returning the smile as she realized they were on to something.   
"Well my lads, what would you suggest I do?"   
  
  
Dwalin should have known something was up when the Hobbit came back with Fili and Kili smiling like the cat that got the cream but soon thereafter they broke camp and he forgot all about the devious smiles as it began rain.   
  
  
Bluebell was miserable not that she would admit it to anyone save maybe Gandalf but probably not even to him. She was damp in places that she had never been damp before outside of taking a bath; she was pretty sure her clothes were going to mildew right to her and she'd never smell anything but wet wool and horse for the rest of her life.   
She blew a damp curl off of her nose and let a groan as it just swung back to hit her in the eye. She knew no one was else was happy either but she couldn't help but miss her warm, dry home with its full tea cupboard and crackling fireplaces.   
"Honestly Tharkun, can't you do something about this rain?" groused Dori near the front of the line.   
"The rain serves a purpose, Master Dori and who am I to tell it otherwise?"   
"Are there any other wizards,Tharkun?" inquired Ori.  
Blue felt her ears perk up, urging her pony up by Dwalin's so she can hear the Istari's answer.   
"There are five of us in total. Saruman the white, Myself, two Blue wizards and a Brown."   
"Are they powerful wizards or more like you?" she asked sweetly, watching Gandalf's spine stiffen in front of her. She wouldn't admit that her smile grew as she heard Dwalin choking back laughter next to her.   
  
  
The Valar seemed to smile upon them the next day as the rain stopped, the sun came back with a nice breeze that dried them out. It wasn't long though before Bluebell was hot, sweaty and stiff feeling astride her pony; her hair was hanging hot down on her neck making it itch and she just knew she was getting a heat rash.   
Thorin must have been just as uncomfortable because he called a halt next to a beautiful stream and stated that they would staying there till the next morning. She seriously considered kissing the King if the idea didn't slightly repulse her.   
  
She quickly brushed Daisy down, supplied an apple she had hidden in her pack and then started going through her clothing to see what was dry enough to be worn after she bathed; she wrinkled her nose at the smell of damp cotton seemed to permeate everything in her pack. But luck was with her when at the bottom of the satchel was a clean dress and a treat she forgot about!   
She hummed in happiness as she nibbled a cookie while stretching her legs.   
"What ya got there, Master Boggins?"   
"A cookie."   
"Where did you find cookies!" the look on his face was so reminiscent of her little cousins she almost handed over her cookie before Fili stopped her.   
"A cookie bush. Honestly Ki, where do you think she got it? She had them in her pack!" the blond prince elbowed the pouting brunette.   
"OW! Uncle, Fili is being mean!"   
_They seriously are like faunts.  
  
__How old are they even? They act like tweens.  
_ She gave voice to that thought and the looks of indignation they had were priceless along with barks of laughter from the rest of the company.   
She couldn't help the giggles; it felt good to laugh after being alone for so long.   
"I'll have you know that I am 77 and Fee is 82!" Kili informed her proudly as the cookie in her mouth turned to ash.   
"Really? How old is everyone else?"  
Gandalf grimaced and refused to answer.   
Thorin "195"  
 "178." Balin volunteered from his seat against tree where he was separating the pages of his ledger to dry.   
"169" Dwalin threw over his shoulder as he rifled through his saddle bags.  
Gloin "Oin is 167 and I'm 158."   
Oin "Of course I know the date!"   
Bifur threw up signs while Bofur smiled "She doesn't know what you're saying! He says that he is 170 and I'm 162." he winked at her.  
Bombur "Yer all old! I'm 150." he patted his round stomach.   
Dori stood in front of his brothers "I am 175, Nori is 148 and Ori is 132."   
"What?" came twin yells from behind her "We thought Ori was the youngest!"   
She shared a smirk with Ori at the Prince's outrage; he had hinted he was older than everyone thought but no one would listen besides Blue.   
"Technically I'm the youngest."   
"Well, lass, how are old are ye?" Bofur asked leaning forward and smiling at her.   
"She can't be that much younger than Kili and Fili." stated Thorin.   
"I'll bet on that!" shouted Nori.  
"Give me 20 on her being 100." bellowed Gloin tossing a small sack of coin to the star haired dwarf.   
Bifur's hands flew and then he tossed a small satchel to Nori as well.   
"I'll put 50 on her being 40." announced Gandalf, strolling past to drop a small purse in the stunned dwarf's hand.   
She shook her head laughing at the gobsmacked look on all their faces.   
"Come on, Master Boggins tell us how old you are!" Kili was fairly vibrating with excitement.   
  
  
The camp was in a uproar and Bluebell was no where to be seen, having fled to the waters edge when Thorin had called her a "wayward child."   
**"I'm 39."** seemed to echo through Dwalin's head as he ran his hand across his face and skull.   
_Fuck that hurt!  
  
__Mahal wept, have I seriously got sun burn on my scalp? How is that even possible?  
  
__I cannot believe I've been lusting after a child!  
  
__~~But she doesn't look like a child,she looks like a curvaceous full figured female.  
  
~~ Noooope not even going there.   
  
_"Tharkun, I CANNOT be responsible for a child on this quest!" roared Thorin while Gandalf looked down at him with a bemused expression.   
"This is criminal! You've sent a child to her DEATH by convincing her to come with us!" the wizard's face was turning thunderous.   
"I CANNOT WILL NOT have her continue on with us!"  
"Thorin, you need her. She will be coming with us and she is not a child."   
Thorin's voice had reached the pitch of a landslid as he raged "SHE IS NOT COMING! SHE IS SO A CHILD! 39?! SHE IS BARELY OF AGE FOR A DWARF!"  
" **THORIN OAKENSHIELD,BLUEBELL IS OF AGE FOR A HOBBIT! SHE HAS BEEN OF AGE SINCE SHE WAS 33 AND ON HER OWN LONGER THAN THAT!"  
** Dwalin would have sworn he heard the earth groan under them as Gandalf thundered at the stubborn King.   
  
Thorin threw his hands up at the wizard rumbling things in khuzdul that sounded a lot like " **stubborn jackass."** and went stomping to his packs while Gandalf stormed off into the woods muttering about "thick skulled dwarf kings who need to listen."   
  
  
"Uncle! Can we go swimming?"   
  
  
  
Bluebell sighed as she scrubbed her hair in the cold stream, not even minding the cool water that swirled around her hips. It felt so good to be clean again; she had started at her feet and scrubbed every inch of herself until she was pink. Little islands of bubbles floated away from her as she rinsed off, the water blissful as it coursed over her heavy breasts and down her belly. She smoothed her hand over the semi flat part of her.  _  
__I was barely plump enough before to be a proper Hobbit. All this travel has done way with it.  
  
__It shouldn't be too hard to get it back once the Mountain is reclaimed.  
  
__Though Dwalin does seem to appreciate the view.  
  
__Please. He'll never look at me again now that they all think I'm a child.  
  
_ Silver eyes flashed through her mind from when she had caught him watching her ride; she had been bracing herself for the criticism to come but instead he had turned red and spurred his pony past her to ride beside Balin.   
Her hands drifted over her breasts as her eyes drifted shut imagining much larger hands in place of her own and a hot, whiskered mouth against her throat. A little moan issued from her throat as one hand slid over her belly and under the water to touch herself still thinking of someone much larger than she.  
Her fingers knew just what to do as they pushed against her folds and found her clit drawing a breathy whisper " _dwalin."_  
A strangled, choking sound came from above her and the last thing she saw before her feet went out from under her was... Dwalin.   
  
  
  
_Mahal and Tharkun are going to strike me blind.  
  
_ Dwalin had climbed the huge boulder at the water's edge fully intending to dive into the river and splash Thorin on the shore but instead he had found himself getting a view of heaven.   
  
Bluebell was standing hip deep in the water with her eyes shut and from what he could see she was completely naked. She was a vision standing there with her hair hanging over shoulders in long wet curls, framing her breasts, _well it seemed almost intentional,_ the sun seemed to illuminate her from behind so that her hair looked like wet gold.   
And her breasts!   
Dwarrowdams didn't have breasts like that ever! They were more muscular than anything with chest hair scattered across them and their nipples were always pale pink.   
Bluebell's were a work of art standing out from her small rib cage like perfectly ripe fruit with large rose colored nipples.   
He cupped his cock to keep it from tenting his small clothes as he stared at her; it pulsed and ached underhand and he found himself unconsciously trying to rub the ache away.  
  
He was transfixed as he watched her caress herself; guilty flared hot in his stomach at the realization she thought she was alone.   
His mouth ran dry and his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth as her hand drifted below the water and small sound escaped her. His cock twitched and he felt his balls tighten as he tried to hide the arousal.   
_I need to say something.  
  
__But what? How do I down play spying on her in a intimate moment?  
  
__She will never forgive me for this.  
  
__"dwalin"  
_ All coherent thought left him right there as his name left her lips and he couldn't help the strangled noise that left him as he came in his small clothes.   
Time slowed as the horror of her seeing him come undone was erased and then replaced with the new one of watching her slip under that water.   
  
He was off the boulder and had his hands under her arms before any of the others could react to her shout of surprise.  
   
  
  
Bluebell rung her hair out and tried to pull her brush through the mass of curls, cursing the fact that she hadn't brushed it before getting it wet. Now it was a half dried rats nest that was threatening to break her only comb.   
She shut her eyes and tried to breath through the frustration before a groan made her ears twitch in the direction of Dwalin.   
The warrior had been avoiding her all evening after plucking her from the water' apologizing profusely and acting contrite every time her eyes drifted to him.   
The sides of her breasts and her arms seemed to burn still from his touch and her heart raced at the thought of being held against his warm skin.   
_I had been right that he was tattooed under all the armor.  
  
_ A thrill raced to her sex  _and his nipples are pierced.  
  
_ Another groan caught her hearing, closer this time and she turned her gaze outwards to find Dwalin kneeling in front of her with his head bowed presenting a ornate dagger to her. Balin was standing behind his brother looking oddly pleased while nodding at her.   
_What is going on?  
  
_ She searched for Gandalf in the group gathering around them but the Wizard was no where to be seen.   
Her eyes returned to the large dwarf in front of her and she almost hissed in sympathy at the sight of his reddened scalp.   
"Ahem."   
She snapped her eyes to Balin "Yes?"   
"Are you going to accept his offer?"   
She cocked her head to the side "What offer."   
" _pay up. I told you she wouldn't know what he was doing."_ was whispered behind her.   
"Dwalin, you'll need to explain to our burglar what you are offering her before we all die of old age."   
  
He stayed on his knees in front of her but he lifted his head and placed the dagger in her lap before looking her in the eye. He looked so ashamed that it broke her heart; he seemed lost for words as he stared at her.   
"Will someone please tell me what is going on?"   
"Bluebells Baggins, Burglar of the Company of Thorin Oakenshield, my brother is offering you his beard for spying on you earlier."   
"What?" she squealed in shock " I could never take his beard for that!"   
Dwalin seemed to droop in front of her and all the dwarves murmured around them.

"Excuse me, Mistress Bluebell but may I ask why?" asked Ori from his spot behind Dori.   
"Why? Why would I?"   
The shorter dwarf stepped around his larger brother and sat beside her "Well he saw you naked. Basically spied on you at your most vulnerable."  
   
Dwalin coughed in front of them and his ears turned red which she found oddly endearing.   
"Oh, that. Well that's nothing."   
"WHAT!" squeaked Ori almost slipping backwards off the log.   
"It is not a big deal. It's my fault really, I didn't tell anyone where I was or what I was going to do. He couldn't have known I was behind that rock when he climbed it and if he saw me naked I hope he enjoyed the view."   
She clapped a hand over her mouth at her cheek on that last bit, eyes huge at the odd expression on Dwalin's face and the coughing fit that seemed to have seized half the company.  
   
"*hack* *cough* that is very understanding of you Mistress Hobbit and it gives us an interesting insight into how you think. I will be taking my brother back to our spot before he falls into the fire." chuckled Balin before pulling Dwalin away.   
"Wait a minute!"   
She could almost see the pained expression in Thorin's tone "What is it, Kili?"   
"The burglar is a girl?"   
Everyone groaned while Bluebell laughed as Thorin growled "Bifur, you're closer. Hit him for me."   
"Oooow!"   
  
  
There in the twilight wood on the edge of camp Bluebell found exactly what she was looking for and couldn't help the huge smile she had when she came back to camp. Everyone seemed back to themselves finally aside from Dwalin, Balin and Thorin who were grouped off separately from the rest arguing in Khuzdul. It must have been an interesting conversation since every once a while something was said that made the others bust out with a laugh before being glared into silence by the bald warrior.   
She shrugged and started trying to pull her comb through her now dry hair.   
It wasn't happening.  
"Bloody hell! That's it!" she stomped over to her bag and began tossing things on the ground as she emptied the pockets.   
"What are you looking for Mistress Boggins?" Kili popped up next her.   
"Looking for scissors."   
"Whatever for?" there was Fili on the other side of her.   
"So I can cut my hair."   
"NO! Please Mistress Boggins don't cut your hair!"   
"Uncle! Uncle!"   
  
  
"What is it now, _namadinùdoy’_  ?"   
Kili stopped in front of him panting "The Burglar wants to cut her hair!" he cried.   
"What?"  
"WHY?"  
WHAT did you two do?" growled Dwalin.   
Kili gulped as the trio waited for his answer "We did nothing! Fee is with her trying to stop her!"   
"Quickly, Before your Kidhuzurâl becomes hairless."   
"HIS WHAT?"   
  
  
"Bluebell, please let us help you with your hair." pleaded Ori.   
"It's really not a big deal to Hobbits to cut their hair, honestly." she frowned at them in confusion; Ori and Kili were almost in tears and the rest of the dwarves were in varying degrees of panic.  
"Hair is very important to Dwarrow and you are now apart of a dwarrow company." stated Dori.   
"Alright," she accepted "So who is going to help me?"   
It suddenly got very quiet and the dwarves began to look at each other expectantly.   
"Oh for Mahal's sake! I'll help you, lass." Dori shot the others a look of complete exasperation.   
  
Soon she found herself between Dori's feet while he muttered under his breath and worked his way through her tangles. Ori had settled in next to her with his sketch book giving her the impression that this was going to take a while.   
He looked at her many times and she could hear him open his mouth a few times before snapping it shut. She could tell he was just brimming with questions but was trying to not be rude.   
So she went first "So how is everyone related?"   
Ori perked up instantly and started gesturing at all the groups. "Well you know Dori, Nori and I are brothers even in that order. Oin and Gloin are brothers so are Bofur and Bombur while Bifur is their close cousin. Kili and Fili are brothers too, same with Balin and Dwalin. Fili and Kili are also Thorin's sister-sons and his heirs. Everyone but the Urs are descendants of the line of Durin basically making us cousins to one extent or the other."   
"Wow."   
"Can you follow all that?"   
"of course" she scoffed "My grandparents had 12 children, 7 of which were sons. I have more cousins that I know what to do with in Tuckborough and Hobbiton."   
  
  
That was how Dwalin found them; Bluebell seated between Dori's feet, laughing as she explained her family tree to the Company that were gathered all around.   
"... My grandfather is the Old Took, Thain of the Shire and my Mother was his 2nd oldest daughter, and his favorite though he'd never admit it if he isn't in his cups. He didn't drink for months after Mum passed away, Gran was beside herself."   
Thorin parked himself across the fire from her "Burglar, what is a Thain?"   
"I have a name" she informed him "You can call me Bluebell, Mister Oakenshield, and a Thain would be like a King I suppose though we've never had any kings."   
Dwalin watched as color seemed to leave Thorin cheeks despite the warmth of the fire.   
"So your Grandfather is King of the Shire?"   
"Basically though Michel Delving has their own Mayor and then there is the Master of Buckland."  
   
He and Thorin exchanged a look as Kili gave voice to exactly what they were thinking "So you're a princess!"   
She blushed prettily as Dori drew through her hair sectioning it off.   
"I suppose so though we don't have a monarchy." she demurred.  
  
Dwalin's hands itched to push Dori out of the way and do Blue's hair himself even though he wasn't as talented at braiding as the oldest Ri.   
_What is wrong with me?  
  
__Why do I care if Dori braids her hair? At least she's not hacking it all off.  
  
_ He felt sick at the thought of her hacking away at her golden curls until it was shorter than Ori's bowl cut. 

  
  
  
"Ahem."   
He was surprised to see Bluebell standing in front of him holding a small bowl in her hands. "Yes, Mistress Burglar?"   
She rolled her eyes at him "Honestly how many times do I need to tell you lot that my name is Bluebell. Please call me Bluebell, Master Dwalin."   
"As long as you call me Dwalin and drop that 'Master' nonsense. I train hard and know how to work." he winked at her.   
_What the hell was that?  
  
__I don't wink!  
  
__I'm not Bofur!  
  
__But it seems to have had an effect...  
  
_ Bluebell blushed and smiled up at him "I have something for your head."   
_I bet you do?.  
  
__Whoa!  
  
No!  
  
We're not going to act like some young pup that can't control ourselves.  
  
_ "I'm sorry, what?"   
"Oh dear, that sounded positively lewd!" even the tips of her ears were blushing.   
He felt his scalp getting even hotter.   
**"Look at Dwalin! He's blushing!"  
****"What did she say?"  
****"Maybe she's asking how much he enjoyed the view earlier!"  
****"Will you lot please SHUT UP!"** he bellowed over his shoulder thankful that Bluebell didn't understand khuzdul at that moment.   
  
"it's alright, Bluebell. What do you have there?"   
She was so busy staring at him that she didn't seem to register that he had spoken to her. Up close her eyes were mesmerizing with their wealth of black lashes and the color looked luminous.   
"*cough* I have a paste that will help with your sunburn... on your head."   
**"Hear that lads? She has something for his 'head'"** crowed Bofur making Dwalin wish for his war hammer that was currently across the camp.   
**"Bifur could you help me out please?"  
** *THWACK!*   
  
"If you'd just sit here I'll apply it for you."   
"Aye."  
  
  
Bluebell was feeling very thankful at that moment that she couldn't understand what they were all saying though she was confused on why Bifur smacked Bofur over the head with the hilt of his boar spear.   
She let Dwalin pick where he wanted to sit and made her way over to the rock at the edge of the camp; even sitting he was almost as tall she was standing, their faces almost level. Thunderhead colored eyes bore into her and she felt more exposed at that moment then when he had seen her nude in the water but she couldn't look away from him.   
  
*CRASH*  
"My fault! I'm not injured!" cried one of the princes.   
The moment was broke and she drew a shaky breath as she looked everywhere but at him.  
_What was that?  
  
__Yavanna's toes it should be illegal to gaze at someone like that.  
  
__Mahal must have made his eyes from silver.  
  
_ "Lass? Are ya alright? Am I making you uncomfortable?"   
"Oh dear me, I must seem so rude just standing here staring into space. Here, hold this for me."  
She thrust the little earthen wear jar into his giant hands. It had taken both of her to hold it and he could palm it with one.   
_One of his hands could cover my entire breast...  
  
__Or one arse cheek...  
  
__Or my thigh..  
  
_ She shivered at the thought of his hands touching her flesh while she studied the top of his head.   
The geometric design was fascinating, it flowed with shape of his skull and was really beautiful when you looked at it the right way. She just wished she could read the runes hidden in the design; she stretched out her hand to trace part of the design only to jerk it back as the warrior hissed.   
"Oh sweet Yavanna! I'm so sorry. Here!" she pulled a cookie from her pocket and popped it in his mouth.  
"What- mmmmm."   
She scooped more of the salve out and careful spread it across the reddened skin of his head while he made happy little noises munching the cookie. She didn't even notice that she had stepped between his legs to better access his forehead until she made her way to his nose only to realize it had almost been in her cleavage!   
"OH-oh... oh" she couldn't seem to think of any other words as she was looked down at him. There were cookie crumbs in his black beard and sugar dusted his bottom lip, his scent seemed to fog her mind as it wafted up to her.   
Instinct seemed to drive her as she darted down to kiss him  
" _Cariad."_ she breathed against his lips before darting away.  
  
  
Dwalin froze as she ran, the feeling of her petal soft lips on his rooting him to the spot as though he was part of the stone.   
**_"Nadad,_ What just happened?"   
**Balin sat down beside him chuckling softly " **She kissed you, Khuzd alla khul."  
  
  
  
** He did his watch with Bifur and then bedded down beside his snoring brother, mind still racing through the events of the day, his lips still tingled and he thought he could still taste her sweetness on them.   
_Sleep will never come if I can't turn off my mind.  
  
__Why did she kiss me?  
  
__How can a Shire Princess be interested in an old warrior like me?  
  
__What was that word she whispered against my lips?  
  
__Where has she been hiding those cookies!  
  
_ Sleep drew him under before he could contemplate much more.   
  
  
As the sky was just barely turning pink a small figure crept across the camp and began to weave flowers into Dwalin's beard, she did it slowly, marveling at how soft his beard actually was as she wove the honey suckle into his braids and tying a few others in with her hair ribbons.   
He started to stir as she was finishing up and without thinking she caressed his face whispering " _Mi gerddaf gyda thi dros lwybrau maith."  
  
_ He smiled and stayed sleeping, what the tiny burglar didn't see was the two sets of eyes that watched her return back to her bed roll.   
  
  
  
Dwalin awoke feeling more refreshed than he had in months, he probably would have stayed asleep if it hadn't been for a loud humming coming from in front of his face. His eyes flew open to a humming bird hoovering above his nose before it darted down.  
" _Mahal zai abra!_ I'm being attacked by tiny birds!"   
Laughter rang out from around the camp as Balin shooed the tiny birds away and helped Dwalin to his feet.   
"Was anyone else attacked? Am I the last to rise? Wha-"   
" **Easy** ** _Na_** _ **dadith,**  _ **I don't think the little birds were after you personally but rather what's in your beard."**    
"What a lovely fashion choice!" called Nori from by the ponies.   
"It really brings out your eyes!" offered Bofur from by the campfire.   
Thorin had a rare smile on his face as he clapped him on the shoulder "Go look in the water."   
  
His reflection had to be kidding. There were white flowers wove into his beard!   
With bit of blue ribbon!   
A hazy memory started to come together  _of small hands smoothing his beard for him and caressing his cheek when the nightmare started. The touch was soothing, loving, it made his heart stop racing and the dream ended before he saw his father killed.  
He heard a soft voice whispering words in a flowing language he'd never heard before but it made his heart feel lighter and his dream was pleasant this morning.   
He had been in a home filled with warmth and good food smells.   
  
He could hear singing coming from where he knew the kitchen was.   
  
Then a baby started to cry and he found it on the rug near the kitchen door. A small pebble with black curls and large green eyes.  
  
"Darling are you hungry?"   
  
He looked to see who owned the voice and right as they stepped into view... _ he had woke up.   
"I look ridiculous! Who would put daisies in my beard?"   
"Actually they're honey suckle." came Bluebell's voice from behind him.  
"Durin's Beard, don't sneak up on me like that!"   
He could see her impish smile in the reflection "I thought you saw me while you were admiring my work."   
He turned, towering over her "You did this to me?"   
Her smile grew even wider "Yes and I must say it  _smells_ rather nice, wouldn't you agree?"   
And with that she walked up the bank back to camp, the sway of her hips fizzling out his anger as she went.   
_Damn she's wearing trousers again.  
  
__I kinda liked that_ dress.  
  
Without thinking he followed her smiling, completely forgetting about the honey suckle until he was set upon by humming birds again while trying to eat his porridge. He pulled them from his beard and set most of them aside except for 2 bound in blue ribbon which he tucked in the secret pocket behind his chest armor.   
  
  _  
  
  
_ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"We need to talk about the other night, Bluebell."   
"Whatever do you mean?"   
"Ye kissed me and then ran away."  
"Oh right. Ummm I'm sorry about that. I don't know what came over me. I-I..." she blushed as she stammered.  
"Ya can't be doing that anymore." he stared straight ahead trying to not notice the roll of her hips.   
"I- wait, what?" she cocked her head to the side in confusion.   
"Ya can't be kissing me and running away like that."   
"You'd prefer I stand still and kiss you?"   
**"Nadad."  
** "No."   
"Then what would you prefer, Master Dwalin?" she had stopped trying to look at him and the tips of her ears were turning red, if he had been paying attention instead of looking everywhere but at her, he would have noticed, and hushed.   
" **DWALIN!"  
"Shazara, Thorin!"   
  
** "I would prefer you not kiss me like that again, Thutrel. It's-"  
*SLAP*   
"There is no need to call names, Master Dwalin! And do not worry I won't be kissing you again!" she kicked her pony to catch up to the brothers Ri and from the looks they were throwing him she wasn't saying anything nice.   
**"Thorin, would you like the honor this time?"  
** *CUFF*   
**"Alright, I deserved that one."  
  
  
** ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
_Stupid clot head!  
  
__I cannot believe I thought he was my Cariad!  
  
__Yavanna weeps that I would end up with that insensitive brute for my life mate.  
  
__Clearly I was mistaken.  
  
  
_ "What do you mean you've lost the ponies?" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still do not have a Beta so all mistakes are my own as I squeeze writing in between times of kid wrangling.
> 
> Translation:  
> Bluebell speaks Welsh= Mi gerddaf gyda thi dros lwybrau maith ~ I'll walk beside you over many paths. 
> 
> Thutrel~ star of all stars (I thought it was sweet since her freckles remind him of stars)  
> Khuzd alla khul~ Stupid dwarf (lovingly)  
> I found my translations on Tumblr.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bluebell proves she can take care of herself, Thank you very much (even if she does get hurt but won't admit it.)  
> Dwalin finally gets a CLUE! (though he's still awkward AF)
> 
> Also a bit of angst tossed in as we find out why Dwalin doesn't want to admit that Bluebell is his One and further why he doesn't want to tell her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided that while Fili, Thorin and Dis have blue eyes, Dwalin's very rare to the point of being almost unheard of.  
> So like Kili's lack of beard Dwalin has been teased about having silvery eyes. 
> 
> I looked up the actor that portrayed Dwalin in the Films. Graham McTavish (yum) and he has grayish blue eyes so I ran with it.

"HOW DID YOU LOSE 2 PONIES?"  
  
**Awkward silence while the princes study their shoes. **  
  
_They are seriously like my cousins. Fools of a Took_  
  
"Where are the ponies?"   
  
**crickets**   
  
" _Ffyc._ Stay here while I follow the very obvious trail of broken trees." she ordered causing the two to turn even redder.   
  
Bluebell made it about 5 feet from the lads when she spotted the first giant foot print in the mud; her heart ached as she could hear the injured cries of the uprooted trees.   
_Of course it's something huge.  
  
__It couldn't be something tiny for our first incident, could it.  
  
_ "On second thought I'm going to need these." she said as she pulled the throwing knives from Fili's belt and large dagger from Kili.   
"Hey!" Kili objected as she took off running quietly along the trail of destruction. dread growing in her belly the further she went. The destruction of the forest became worse the farther she went and soon she could hear the most atrocious noise along with the whinnying of ponies. She stopped and ducked behind a large rock; peeking over it she saw the pin of ponies naturally on the opposite side of the camp from her and the things making all the noise.   
  
Trolls.   
  
Bloody freaking Mountain Trolls.   
  
A crash sounded from behind her and she whirled, knife at the ready to take out whatever was behind her.   
It was the princes who froze upon spotting the trio of trolls.   
"Get down!" she hissed pulling them down beside her by the front of their tunics.  
"What are you doing?" she demanded.   
Fili turned wide blue eyes away from the caterwauling trolls "Those are- those are trolls!"   
She rolled her eyes suddenly feeling very old "Ya don't say?"   
He at least had the decency to look sheepish while Kili was fairly bouncing with anticipation. "We're going to need Uncle's and Dwalin's help at least!"  
  
The thought of needing those to cabbage heads help stuck in her craw.   
_I do not need Dwalin's help!  
  
__He'll come running in here and kill them all fierce dwarven warrior style and then probably tell me I smell again.  
  
__No thank you! I can handle this myself and then I can be all "HA HA I didn't need your stupid help."  
  
I'll sneak across the camp and free the ponies before those things have a clue that I'm there.   
  
And if one spots me, a throwing knife to the eye will take care of that. Then we'll return to camp and the princes can tell everyone of my skill and I can rub Dwalin's big nose in my success!   
  
__~~And then he'll kiss me again and rub his nose is something else...~~  
  
The fuck was that Yavanna? There is nooooo way he is touching me willing... ever.   
  
_ She felt very smug about her plan aside from that last part and she patted her pockets to make sure she knew where everything was.   
"Mistress Baggins, wait! Hoot once like a barn owl and twice like a brown owl if you need help."   
She snorted very unladylike "Please. I won't need help."   
  
  
  
_Famous last words of bravado that was._ she mused as the Trolls spotted her thanks to the ponies picking up pitch as she tried to open the gate quietly.   
Before she could even think to dart away a huge hand had her in its grasp; a pained gasp broke from her as something stabbed her in the back as tree trunk thick fingers squeezed her tight. Adrenalin washed away the pain as she came face to face with the troll she had heard called "Bert."  
"What's this then?" he asked tipping her sideways to study her; she was in no mood to answer him as she wiggled to get into her pockets.   
_Almost there.  
  
_ "I say we eat!"   
  
_Just a little more!  
  
_ "Funny looking thing, innit?"   
  
_Got it!  
  
_ "Excuse me but it is not polite to call someone funny looking!" she sniffed and before Bert could blink, a silver knife sprouted from his eye socket.   
  
She had not thought things through at all as with his death he dropped her as he fell!   
  
The injury to her back made her hiss before she rolled away from the huge hands of his brothers.   
""Grab it, Tom! Don't let it escape! I'll turn it into jelly for killing Bert!" bellowed the troll with huge spoon.   
"I'm trying William but it's quick. Stop movin-" Blue fired another dagger and it hit its mark in the mud brown eye of the smaller troll.   
  
She fell on her butt as the biggest troll loomed over her, seemingly intent on smashing her with his giant ladle. The ground beneath her rumbled and she had the last dagger out but she couldn't seem to get a bead on a spot that would actually do anything beside piss him off more.   
_This is it.  
  
__He's going to squash me flat and that'll be it.  
  
__Death by spoon.  
  
_ She started giggling at that last part and her laughter made the troll stop to stare at her in surprise, she saw the opening and took it.   
  
That's how Dwalin and the rest found her; laughing sitting in front of 3 dead trolls.   


  
  
  
Dwalin was astonished, he was baffled and he was pretty sure that he was in love.   
  
He had burst threw the brush with Thorin and the rest of the company hot on his heels, ready to battle the monstrosities only to be frozen in their tracks by Bluebell Baggins.   
  
Bluebell looked like at tiny avenging goddess sitting there framed by three huge, very dead trolls, all of which had one of Fili's daggers sticking from their eyes. He had never seen anyone manage something like that before in all his years of fighting.   
  
When the lads had ran into camp yelling that Bluebell was going up against three mountain trolls to try and get the ponies back, he thought Thorin might have a stroke. He turned the air all shades of blue cursing everything from his sister-sons to Gandalf leaving just when he would of been of some use to them and finished with cursing stubborn hobbits who should know when to ask for help!   
Thorin was only slightly less gobsmacked than he was at the sight before them.   
  
"What..? How..How did..? Where did you...?"   
"Eloquent as always, Master Oakenshield." quipped Tharkun as he breezed past towards Bluebell.   
  
**And** of course now that the excitement was past Gandalf popped up behind the pony pin and split the boulder there for good measure. The trolls turned to stone before their very eyes and Dwalin was sure no one would ever believe him when he repeated this part of the tale once Erebor was reclaimed.   
  
_How?  
  
__Where did she learn anything like that?  
  
__That's an almost impossible shot for me and I'm 4 times her age!  
  
__Mahal and Yavanna surely must have had a hand in forming this one.  
  
_ "Mistress Boggins' it looks like you're bleeding!" announced one of the prince's as they followed her around the Troll camp.   
"It's nothing. Just a scratch, I'm fine."   
"That looks like more than a scratch to me." said one of the brothers.  
"I agree with Fee! I think you should have Oin take a look." suggested Kili.   
"I think not, thank you very much! I don't need any help!" she snapped at them and he could see her immediately turn red at her outburst. Their eyes met across the camp and she turned even redder before disappearing behind Tharkun.   
  
He waved the lads over to him and they came along but they looked like puppies that had been kicked.   
**"I-is she bleeding badly?"** he asked quietly not wanting to risk Bluebell's anger at his prying.   
Kili shrugged while Fili looked unsure " **I can't tell but the back of her shirt looks wet to the waist. She won't hold still for me to see if it's all blood or not."  
"Could it be troll blood?"**  he asked hopefully.   
Fili shook his head **"I have no idea."** **  
****"Why did she yell at us?"** whined Kili looking even more pitiful.   
Dwalin shook his head and clapped his hand on the youngest prince's shoulder as he stood. "Could just be adrenaline from the fight. I'm sure she'll apologize in a few minutes."  
_Should I check on her?  
  
__She'd tell us if she was really hurt,wouldn't she?  
  
__Maybe not since she's so bent on not being a burden.  
  
__I'll tell Tharkun and Thorin. One of them will know how to handle her.  
  
_ All thoughts of speaking to them went out the window as Gloin gave a shout that he had found the Troll horde.   
  
  
  
  
Bella was beginning to feel queasy as she sat on the stump outside the cave, she felt hot even though it wasn't even warm enough to get the dew off the grass. She could hear Bofur complaining in the cave about the smell but in the next breath exclaim about some hidden treasure.   
Once she had smelled the cave she had flatly refused to step one hairy toe in there; a few of the others had sided with her and Gloin just called them idiots before dragging Bofur inside with him.  
   
Bifur plopped down next to her nibbling on a bunch of daisies, he offered her a bloom but she just smiled and shook her head. Food did not sound particularly good right then and she shivered even though she was sitting in a sunbeam.   
She felt a finger poke her knee and she looked over expecting Kili to be poking at her even though she had shouted at him and Fili. But it was Bifur still.   
_I really need to apologize to them._  
  
Bifur was moving his hands in an odd fashion and after a tick she realized he was doing the dwarfish sign language.    
"I'm sorry I don't know what you're saying." she apologized.   
He moved his hands faster as he spoke in what sounded like the language the others used but different at the same time.  
_I'll have to ask Ori about that.  
_  
" **Irak’Nadad"**  
Bombur came popping up from somewhere behind them " **Kun?"**  
Bifur's hands flew once someone that understood him was there.   
Bombur's eyebrows rose and he eyed Bluebell in concern "He wants to know if you're alright? He can smell blood and thinks you have a fever."   
"Why is everyone so concerned about me all of a sudden!" she shouted at the cousins loud enough that it seemed like the rest had stopped what they were doing to stare. Bofur almost tipped over as he was in mid-shovel with Gloin standing by with a chest of gold bits.   
  
Whatever she was going to do to further embarrass herself was interrupted by loud crashing followed by a peculiar fellow bursting from the forest on a rabbit drawn sleigh.   
  
After that was a blur of wargs, running till she thought her legs were going to give out, stabbing a warg in the eye while Thorin killed the orc and then suddenly dropping through a hole in the rock formation behind them right after she had resigned herself to being a warg snack.   
  
Sliding down the embankment made the wound on her back burn like it was on fire and she could feel blood running into the waist band of her trousers while she held her breath waiting to see if anything was going to follow them in.   
A orc fell through but it was dead before it reached them with an arrow with pretty fletching sticking from its chest.   
"You! What were you thinking attacking that warg?" Thorin shouted at her as he hauled her up by her lapels.   
"There's a path up here, should we follow it?" shouted Dwalin cutting Thorin's tirade at her supposed stupidity short.   
"Of course!" answered Gandalf.   
Thorin set her down roughly and the marching line of dwarrow wavered in front of her. The pain in her back was mounting now that her adrenaline was going down.   
_Yavanna's toes I don't recall it hurting like this earlier!  
  
__WHICH earlier the one with the trolls or the crazy wizard on the sleigh?  
  
__What did I do to myself?  
  
_ Kili and Fili popped up on each side of her like bookends made of day light and dark as they followed the rest of the group out of the cavern and on to a path with an amazing view.   
"What is this place?" she breathed.   
"Why, it's Rivendell, my dear girl." laughed Gandalf and if she hadn't been in so much pain she would have laughed too. She had dreamed of seeing Rivendell since she was knee high to a duck, hearing all of her Mum's tales about visiting with the elves and Lord Elrond at the Last Homely House.   
"You lead us straight to our enemies!" Thorin accused the Istari looking beyond furious and the others rallied behind him.   
"They are not your enemies, Master Oakenshield. Lord Elrond is one of the few people left in Middle Earth that can read your map. We need his help."   
  
  
Thorin looked a lot like Kili as he pouted along the way to the gates leading into the Homely House, Dwalin was having a hard time not laughing at his friend stomping along like a toddler that had been told No.   
He gripped his axes and scanned the trees for archers since that was the leaf eaters preferred form of fighting.   
Soon he was scanning the group and when he didn't immediately spot Bluebell he began to panic thinking they had left her behind in that cave with the dead Orc. He spotted her towards the back looking oddly pale, sandwiched between Kili and Fili who were chatting animatedly about something to her.   
  
  
Bluebell was focusing on putting one foot in front of the other and that was about the limit of it when the boys suddenly picked her up, one on each side and hustled her to the middle of a ring that the company had formed around her, the princes and Ori. Fuzziness was eating at the edge of her sight as she tried to focus on the beings on horseback that was all around them.   
"Did he offer us insult?" bellowed Gloin.   
"No Master Gloin, He offered you food and a place to rest."   
  
"Oh, Thank  _Yavanna."_ she groaned as her legs gave out; the startled yells from the others echoed in her ears as she collapsed.   
  
  
Ori was pretty sure his heart had stopped as he caught Blue from cracking her head on the stones where they stood. She was so much smaller than he that it felt like he was holding a bundle of clothes and not another being.   
Everyone was yelling questions in his ears and trying to take her from him but he refused to surrender her.  
"What wrong, lad?"   
"Give her here! She's too heavy for you!" insisted Dori.   
"I'm fine! Leave off."   
"Bet she collapsed from all that running." groused Thorin from somewhere in front of him.   
"Is she still breathing?"   
  
It didn't take him long to figure out why she had collapsed as a wetness leaked onto his sleeve and down his hand. He shrugged her close to see blood on his arm "Tharkun! Oin! She-she's bleeding!"   
The wizard parted the company like they weren't there with the old healer right on his heels.   
One laid a hand on her forehead while the other seized her wrist.   
"She is burning up!"  
"Her pulse is racing like those rabbits." stated Oin.   
"Quickly, bring her this way!" called a elf with long brown hair.   
"Lead on Master Ori. We'll be right behind you."   
  
  
  
Dwalin hated waiting. He  _loathed_ waiting and what was worse was that there was nothing he could do to help in any form!   
The blond elf had showed them to a set of room that the company could share how they saw fit. Currently it was himself, Thorin, Balin and the princes to a room but Thorin was thinking that they would all be sleeping in the shared sitting area instead.   
He paced the length of the room several times growling at any of them that got close to him.   
He wasn't sure he had ever felt so helpless, so useless before this moment.  
_How had I not known she was so badly injured!  
  
__The lads mentioned she was bleeding but she made such a stink about us asking.  
  
__And then there was all the running and the orcs on wargs.  
  
__Mahal's beard, she slid on her back into that cave!  
  
__How could I have not known my Heart Lode was wounded?  
  
__Well obviously cause she's not! Durin's beard why do I keep calling her that!  
  
_ " _N_ _adadith,_ Peace. You're about to wear a rut in the marble floor worrying about your  **Khebabmudtu."  
  
** Dwalin froze in his tracks and locked eyes with his brother seated beside Thorin near the window. The sound of the rain pouring down outside seemed amplified for a moment.   
"What did you call her?" he whispered.   
Balin smiled and repeated himself " **Khebabmudtu."**  
He sat down hard on the landing step not noticing or caring that his weapons snagged the woven rug where they were to leave their shoes.   
"How can you call her that?"   
Balin shrugged in his comfy seat, Thorin leaned forward in his seat apparently interested in where this conversation was going. "You react to her, you care about how she is, I see you keep track of her no matter what's going on, you aren't purposely rude to her and you almost came is your pants while eating her cookies. Amad always swore that you'd find your one with your stomach."   
He stood up and walked over to stand in front of his big brother "No. You're wrong there. She's not my  **Khebabmudtu;** how can she be? She's not a dwarf! She's stubborn-"  
"So are you." interrupted his  _M_ _urkhûn.  
"_ She's sarcastic-"  
"So are you." was the twin response from Balin and Thorin while the latter sported a shit eating grin.   
"She's short tempered!"   
"So are you, Master Dwalin." that one came from Kili where he was napping with his brother in the corner. The lad didn't even open his eyes!   
"She's sneaky!"   
"You can be." laughed Balin.   
"She's arrogant and doesn't know when to ask for help!"  
"That's you to a T!" they shouted back except Fili who was still sleeping somehow.   
"What if she's dying and it's my fault? She can't be my  **Khebabmudtu** because I don't deserve her!" he roared back before storming from the room, smashing a potted plant with his iron fist on his way.   
  
  
Thorin shared a look with his oldest friend. "That didn't go how I thought it would."  
"Me neither, lad. Think we pushed too hard?"   
Thorin ran a hand over his short beard "I think he's just in that deep of denial. Why is he in that deep of denial?"   
A cloud passed over Balin's face that was almost as dark as the storm heads outside.  
"Come on Mister Balin! Why is Dwalin not willing to admit his One is Bluebell? Does he hate Hobbits?" prodded Kili.  
Balin stroked his white beard "No he doesn't hate anything but Orcs honestly. I think he's denial because the last female he thought was his One told him he was too ugly to be any proper dwarrow's One. She said his eyes weren't natural and that it didn't matter if he was from the Line of Durin it wasn't right."   
Thorin growled low in his throat.   
"Aye lad, I made the same noise when Dwalin came home tighter than a boiled owl and broke down telling me what Asta had said. He was barely 70 when that happened, before that he had been quite romantic and excited about the idea of finding his One. He never mentioned it again after that instead he threw himself into his training to become the captain of the guard."   
Sniffling brought their attention to Kili still in the corner with a sleeping Fili snuggled up against him; the lad had tears on his cheeks.  
"That's terrible! Uncle we have to help him!"   
  
Thorin smiled at soft hearted Kili still was and prayed hestayed that way a bit longer " **Kun,** **N** **amadinùdoy’** but how? Clearly pointing out everything they have in common didn't help."   
"What if we see how Miss Bluebell feels about Dwalin?" mused Balin resuming his seat by the window where the rain scented breeze cooled the room.   
"I can do that!" volunteered Kili beaming with hope again.   
"What if someone else showed interest in Miss Baggins'?" came Fili's sleep clouded idea.   
"I'll do that," offered Thorin "She doesn't seem to mind me as much most days."   
"Probably because you never talk to her." teased Kili.   
Thorin smiled for the first time in what felt like forever and it felt good. "I think I should go see where Dwalin ended up and then I'll check to see if there is any news on the Burglar."   
As he shut the door behind him he could hear Fili state "He's going to need to start saying her name if he's to flirt with her."  
"Does Uncle even know how to flirt, Mister Balin." asked Kili.   
He couldn't resist laughing as he walked past the others, having a decent idea of where the Guard had gone.   
  
  
  
Dwalin had followed path back from where they entered and found the small garden that was hidden behind some bushes.   
There he sat and pulled off his weapons and armor, his knuckle dusters and his outer tunic. When the outer tunic came off he found the little bunch of honey suckle still bound with the blue ribbon.   
He was astonished to see that blooms weren't dead, slightly wilted and a little squished but still fragrant and it  _felt_ alive.   
He sat there in the summer rain and puzzled on the little bundle of blooms.   
  
  
" _Dwalin."  
_ Bluebell felt like she was floating on a cloud somewhere peaceful and then the rain had come. She couldn't seem to get away from it and it had made her leave her cloud.   
The light was dim in the room when she forced her eyes open to escape the rain.   
_That isn't my ceiling.  
  
_ She frowned at the offending woodwork before she smelled Old Toby and heard a familiar chuckle from across the room. She pushed to sit up and her back screamed in protest as a cold sweat blossomed across her brow.   
"Stop right there, Mistress Hobbit. You'll undo some of our hard work if you push like that."   
A gentle hand pressed her back into the marshmallow pillows and she looked up into the face of an unfamiliar elf.   
"Ah I should have seen it before now. You are the image of your mother, Belladonna."   
Relief flooded her as she realized who she was staring at.   
Elrond.   
Uncle Elrond as her mother had titled him.   
"Uncle. We have to stop meeting like this." she smiled.   
"If you're feeling well enough to make jokes, lassie, then I thinks it safe for this old dwarf to go give everyone an update and catch some shut eye." stated Oin from the opposite side of her bed. She smiled at him and he patted her hand before picking up his horn and bidding them all a good night.   
The grey wizard soon took Oin's place and held her now warm hand.   
"You gave us all quite the scare, my dear. Why didn't tell me you were injured?"   
She looked away from his kind blue eyes " I didn't want to be a burden."   
"Did you tell anyone you were hurt?"   
She felt her face grow hot with embarrassment as she shook it "Fili and Kili guessed I was but I yelled at them for asking. I didn't want to be a inconvenience."   
Gandalf's voice became stern "Bluebell Dawn Baggins, you are a fool of a Took."   
"I know" she whispered.   
"Bluebell"   
She turned to meet light blue eyes and the understanding there made tears spring to her eyes.   
"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Elrond asked softly.   
"I wanted to prove *sniffle* that I didn't need Dw- anyone's help and that *sniff* I could handle myself."   
"My darling Hobbit, there is nothing wrong with admitting you need help especially when you are on the verge of bleeding out!" chided Gandalf.   
"What? Was it really that bad?"   
Elrond smoothed her curls back from her forehead "Yes Bluebell, it really was 'that bad'. We could see bone in one spot and infection was setting in very fast. You're extremely fortunate that Mithrander brought you here."   
"Bluebell, what stabbed you?'   
She had to think back on that "Nothing that I know of. One of the trolls caught and picked me up. When he wrapped his fingers around to squeeze me I felt a sharp pain but then it went away."   
Gandalf grimaced before drawing on his pipe and releasing an impressive smoke ring "Troll finger nail is what cut you. No wonder it became infected so quickly. Trolls are not known for their hygiene and their nails are incredibly sharp."   
"You're telling me" she muttered.   
Elrond chuckled "No, Bluebell you don't understand they can cut horses in half with their finger nails once they grow long enough."   
"Oh my."  
  
  
Thorin met Oin while he searched for his friend; dread seized his gut at how tired the healer looked.  
_Oh sweet Mahal, did Bluebell not make it?  
  
__How will I tell Dwalin?  
  
__He'll never forgive himself.  
  
__I'll never forgive myself if she's gone.  
  
__I shouldn't have been so rough on her, if I had been kinder she might have told she was hurt before it was too late.  
_ An image of Bluebell laid out in her finest, just looking like she was sleeping was like a fist to the stomach.  
  
"Oi, laddie, what the matter? Don't tell me you're injured too and didn't want to be a burden to tell me." demanded Oin.   
Thorin schooled his face "No I'm not injured. Tell me how is the Burglar?"   
Oin shook his head and Thorin felt like throwing up.  
"Gave us quite a scare but between the 3 of us we got her to rights. She'll need time to heal though and she'll have a scar to boot. Strangest thing she woke up and it sounded like she whispered Dwalin's name."   
Thorin stiffened as a choked sound came from behind the bushes to his right though Oin took no notice of it since he was still talking.   
"Damnedest thing too she called Lord Elrond 'Uncle'. I'll give it to the old leaf eater he knows his healing." and with that Oin went meandering down the hall towards to the rest of the company.   
He watched the older dwarf go before parting the bushes to reveal Dwalin sitting in the rain in what appeared to be just a tiny hidden garden.   
The big warrior was on his knees in the middle of the a patch of little blue flowers and almost appeared to be praying.   
_"_ **Murkhûn** _,_ are you alright?"   
Thorin stayed under the eaves as he spoke.   
_I do not care for wet hair, thank you very much.  
  
_ "I- I didn't get her killed."   
  
He couldn't tell what kind of emotion it was behind that sentence but it made his heart clench nonetheless.   
_I really should start listening to Dis on the fact that there are more than three emotions.  
  
_ "No, Dwalin,  _We_ didn't get her killed."   
Dwalin stared at him with those storm cloud eyes and surprised the King when his face crumpled with relief and tears leaked down into his beard.  
_Of course Dwalin would choose to shed tears in the rain so no one can tell.  
  
_ Thorin shook his head and stepped into the rain, cringing as it slid under the collar of his tunic and down his spine. He knelt in front of the bigger man and pulled his forehead down to meet his own.   
"It's alright to care for her."  
Dwalin stayed there with his forehead pressed against Thorin's but shook his head.   
"I think she's your One."   
"Aye, she might be but I'll never tell her."   
  
The rain melded their hair together as Thorin pondered how stubborn Dwalin was being.   
"She will not be like Asta."   
Dwalin's flew open and he drew back "How do you know about that balrog in skirts?"  
"Balin told us after you stormed out."   
  
Dwalin stood and tried to brush the mud off his trouser knees to no avail.  
"Miss Baggins is not like a dwarrowdam."   
"Ya sure about that? She reminds me a bit of your sister."   
Thorin let out a bark of laughter "Be that as it may, she is sweeter than any dwarrowdam, and I think you should speak to her."   
"I don't think so Thorin. I don't care to have a One; all it will lead to is heartache."   
  
His patience was running short; just when he thought he had Dwalin convinced to at least speak to her the big oaf changes directions on him!  
"As your King I'm ordering you to tell her."   
_  
__Welp that was a bad idea_ he thought as Dwalin knocked him ass over tea kettle into the bushes before storming off again.   
  
  
   
  
_Seriously! Seriously!  
  
__Who does he think he is trying to order me to tell her!  
  
__I will not put either of us through that!  
  
_ Dwalin's mind shifted back to Asta. She was supposedly the epitome of Dwarvish beauty with long chestnut brown hair and a full beard of the same color. He had thought himself in love with her when they had sparred together and then she had gone to have a pint with him. Turned out she was using him to get close to the Royals but he didn't catch on till he had presented her with one of his daggers and she laughed in his face.   
"You could never be my One." she informed him "Your eyes are too unnatural. You'll never find a one amongst the Dwarrow."   
She had turned on her booted heel and walked away leaving him standing there with his heart bleeding.   
Right there he had vowed that he had no interest in a One and wanted no part of love.   
And he had kept that vow for almost a 100 years before a sarcastic, arrogant, stubborn, sweet, understanding, beautiful, Hobbit had been dragged into his life by a meddling wizard.   
Now he found himself wondering what it would be like to have a partner, to have someone that cared for him and only him, someone that smelled of sweet things and made him cookies, someone that didn't want him just for his family name or connections and that didn't mind his eye color. Someone smaller than himself with a body he wanted to take the rest of his life learning, and a mind that was as quick as a bear trap that he wanted to learn all of its secrets.   
  
"Ah Master Dwalin, just the dwarf for the job I have!"   
Tharkun seemed to pop out of nowhere but considering he'd been too lost in his own thoughts to even know where he was it wasn't that surprising.   
"Er... Of course, Tharkun, How can I be of service?"   
The Istari beamed at him "Excellent! Can you sit with Bluebell for me? She's sleeping again and I need to go check on something."   
_Of all the things he could ask, he asks for that.  
  
_ "Aye, I'll sit with her."   
  
Tharkun lead him into a softly lit room that was very similar to the one he was sharing with Balin, Thorin and the princes. The main difference being there was only one bed, a bed that looked very large as it made the being laying on it look incredibly small.   
He knew that Bluebell was small but seeing her lying there in the elf sized bed made it so much more obvious.   
She looked so peaceful laying there with her curls spilling over the edge of the pillow like a honey water fall, her lashes were black fans against her pale cheeks.   
_Her cheeks are never that pale.  
  
__Are they sure she'll be alright?  
  
__Her skin looks so soft, Wonder if she'd mind if I touched it.  
  
__Should I touch her? She looks so fragile.  
_  
A soft sound broke his reverie and pulled his attention to the form on the bed. Bluebell's face was scrunched up and she was muttering something he couldn't make out. Her hand was fluttering on the bed near where he was sitting, it was almost like she was trying to grasp something that wasn't there. Hoping to soothe her he grabbed her hand but that seemed to have to opposite effect he was hoping for as she jerked her hand from him and her words became audible.   
"Nonononononono please don't. Don't! DON'T!"   
Without thinking he touched her forehead "Bluebell, Bluebell! It's alright. You're safe,  **Thutrel."**  
His hand drifted down to cup her cheek and she slowed her thrashing, and leaned into his palm. She was so soft! Her skin felt softer than lambs wool and he couldn't stop his thumb from rubbing her cheek bone   
" _Dwalin, Roeddwn i'n gwybod y byddech chi'n dod."  
  
What did she just say?   
  
Say my name again, please.   
  
  
_**"Men eleneku menu o bepap opetu ezirak."** he whispered into her curls.   
"Dwalin."   
His heart skipped a beat as he drew back to see her eyes were open; their pale green snaring him faster than a fish hook. He wasn't sure how long they had looked into each others eyes but the things he saw in their jade colored depths made his heart race and his mind go blank.   
_She's not looking away.  
  
__Should I move?  
  
__Crap am I leaning on part of her?  
  
__Why isn't she saying anything?  
  
  
_ He moved to sit down when her small hand caught the front of his shirt  
"No" she whispered pulling him closer than before.   
She licked her lips looking up at him and he felt himself mimic her. Her lips glistened like dew covered rose petals and all he could think of was seeing if they were as soft as they looked.   
_NO! I can't kiss her!  
  
__But I want to.  
  
__One kiss can't hurt anything right?_

 _No!_  
"Bluebell, What-"   
"I'm back, Master Dwalin! You can go back to whatever you were off to." Tharkun came strolling in smiling, oblivious to what he had just interrupted.   
Dwalin jerked back like he had burned himself.   
"Right. Well there you. Good night, Tharkun, Bluebell."   
And like the coward he felt he was, he almost ran from the room and didn't stop till he was in his room with only Balin for company.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welsh translations (I got most of the translations from google or tumblr so I apologize if they are fucked beyond reason lol)  
> Ffyc~ Fuck  
> Roeddwn i'n gwybod y byddech chi'n dod~ I knew you would come. 
> 
>  
> 
> Khuzdul  
> Khebabmudtu~ heart forge. (couldn't find heart lode so this works for me)  
> Murkhûn~ Shield man (I'm using it for shield brother.)  
> Thutrel~ Star of Stars  
> Men eleneku menu o bepap opetu ezirak~ I desire you more than an endless vein of mithril.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elves find Bluebell adorable and enjoy messing with the Company as they hide her from them. (All in fun)  
> The Company learns to never challenge a Hobbit to a drinking contest,  
> Thorin and the lads put their plan to work (end up back firing fantastically!)  
> AND  
> She makes cookies for Dwalin. 
> 
> The Brothers Ri are stepping in.   
> Balin has had enough of this shit, thank you very much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning!!! Domestic abuse
> 
> Also time line shenanigans
> 
>  
> 
> I could only find the Sindarin words for like every other word so underline is also Sindarin in English unless I note it otherwise lol 
> 
> Once again all the phrases I've used I have found on Tumblr and WordPress or in the case of the Welsh its Google translate to the rescue.   
> I apologize if any of it is complete garbage. 
> 
> I still do not have a Beta so all mistakes are my own.

  
"I'm an idiot."   
 **"Kun, Nadad** but we knew that." stated Balin not looking up from his ledger while Dwalin went through another bout of introspection.   
"Not helping!" he growled.   
  
It had been a week since the near miss kiss and Dwalin had been flipping between beating himself up for not kissing her and proclaiming to any that would listen about how it was a bad idea since he didn't believe he had a One, and he wasn't sure he even liked females, and how if he had a One it wouldn't be a fussy Hobbit. He only said that last part once before Dori cuffed him up the back of the head and had informed him he's be very fortunate if someone like Miss Bluebell was his one.   
  
"Thorin, what do you think?"   
"I agree. You're an Idiot." the King put his feet up and smiled at his best friend.   
 **"Hubma rakit."** he snarled before grabbing Thorin's feet and flipping him over in his chair.   
  
Thorin got up quickly, feeling distinctly over Dwalin's nonsense.  
 _This is ridiculous.  
  
_ _Others would give their left stone to find their One.  
  
_ _Hell I'd give a stone to find my One even if she was a Hobbit.  
  
_ _Maybe I can smack some sense into him.  
  
_ Thorin smirked at that idea, it would be fun to spar and kick Dwalin's ass at the same time.    
"Bring it,  **lulkhel!"** he spat.   
Balin audible groaned and put his face in his hand while Dwalin stiffened to his full height.   
"What did you call me?" he asked calmly.   
 _Maybe this was a bad idea.  
  
_ That is all the thought Thorin managed before he saw a giant fist headed towards his face.   
  
  
"Mistress Boggins' is coming!" Kili cheered throwing open the door to reveal both of them sporting black eyes.   
 _Shit_  
  
  
Bluebell wished she had at least two more pairs of eyes so that she could see everything as Lord Elrond lead her back to the company.   
Her wound was mostly healed thanks to the magic laid on her by both Elrond and Gandalf, and also to the fact that Hobbits are fast healers. So there was no reason for her to remain in the House of Healing any longer but Uncle Elrond had strict instructions that she was to do nothing but rest while they waited for the full moon and if she did otherwise. Well she knew better than to not listen to an immortal healer.    
"Hold on a moment my dear."   
  
A blond elf came up to whisper in Elrond's ear and though she could hear them, she had no clue what was being said.   
 _I wish I had paid more attention when Mum tried to teach me Sindarin.  
  
_ _Then again you know what they say about eavesdropping on conversations you're not a part of.  
  
_ _Like the fact Dwalin and Thorin used to be a couple. Didn't need to know that.  
  
Explains why he wasn't really interested in me and panicked when I tried to kiss him.  
  
I'm nothing compared to a King._ she thought feeling a bit sad. 

_  
  
_ "Tell me, Bluebell. Do you like books."   
Now that made her perk up.   
"I love books! I have a whole library full of them back at Bag End and I told Ori that I would help with Erebor's Library!" she gushed.   
He smiled at her enthusiasm "Well then how about we take a detour?"   
  
 _Why the sudden detour?  
  
_ _Maybe I can find a book to refresh my Sindarin in this library._  
  
She didn't mind the detour too much since she got to see so much more of Rivendell and it was all so beautiful.   
"Your home is truly beautiful, Lord Elrond."   
He patted her hand "I've told you, Bluebell, call me Elrond or Uncle. Your mother was a dear  _Mellonen."  
  
_ His statement made her feel warm, it had been so long since she had had someone want to be her family that didn't want anything from her.   
"Alright, Uncle."   
  
Up ahead they heard a resounding crash and then a pair of elves came running around the corner, nearly colliding with Bluebell before Elrond had a chance to spin her out of the way.   
"Daro te! Elladan! Elrohir! Man carach? _"  
  
_ The pair stopped in their tracks in front of them and for a moment Bluebell felt like she was seeing double.   
  
Twins!  
  
She could see a bit of Elrond in their features so it was no surprise when they shouted " _Ada!_ We weren't doing anything!"   
Elrond arched a brow at them, clearly not believing them.   
"Honestly Ada!"  
"And"  
"We have."   
"No idea."   
"What, Lindr."   
"Is mad about." they finished together.   
Watching them go back and forth made her think of Fili and Kili; she couldn't stop the fit of giggles that seized her.   
The pair seemed to see her for the first time when she started laughing.   
"Ada, who is this fair lady?" they chirped.   
They were quite handsome though entirely too tall for her taste, however she couldn't help blushing under their intense gaze.   
Elrond gave the sigh that every parent has made at some point when dealing with mischievous offspring and before stepping aside to full reveal her.   
"This is Mistress Bluebell Baggins, she's here with a company of Thorin Oakenshield."   
"You're the hobbit that killed the trolls!" exclaimed the one on the left causing her to blush all the way to the tips of her ears.   
The other crouched down to her level "You look familiar. Have you been here before?"   
She shook her head "I had never left the Shire until recently."   
"oh oh, she looks like Miss Belladonna!" cried the first.   
 _Of course they'd remember Mum.  
  
_ Her heart gave a painful clench at the mention of how she resembled her Mother.   
"That was my Mother."   
The look of hopeful excitement almost hurt her eyes looking at them.   
"Is she here, too? She told the best stories!"   
Tears burned her eyes "No, she's not here. She went to Yavanna's garden about 10 years ago."   
The boys seemed to droop along with her ears at the news that Belladonna was gone.   
"We are very sorry to hear about the loss of your Mum." they told her. "Our Mum is gone too."   
"Oh you poor lads." she took their hands in hers "I'm so sorry."   
"It will be well, Mistress Bluebell. We killed the monsters that hurt her."  
"I did too."   
  
The twins were more than happy to take over as her escorts so their father could run damage control on whatever they did. Apparently Lindr was on the verge of sailing to the Undying Lands but according to the twins he was being very dramatic.   
"This is amazing!"   
  
  
"Noeg are doing what?"   
"Fighting, amongst themselves. It seems to be mainly the big bald one and their leader Thorin."   
*Groans in sindarin*   
"And what did my sons do?"   
"Lindr claims that they have hidden all his quills... again."  
"Of course they did. Did he perchance try giving them lessons on penmanship again?''  
"Yes, milord. He said their hand writing looked like they dipped a bird's feet in ink and let it hop across the paper."   
"By the stars, what am I going to do with them."   
Laughter is the only response he gets.   
"When Miss Baggins is done in the library, please take her to lady's wing to Arwen. I'll go deal with Lindr."   
  
  
  
"What do you mean she's not in her room?"   
"She never returned with the elves."   
  
  
Bluebell had never seen anything as beautiful as the women's wing of the Homely house and Arwen was breath taking. She was suddenly very aware of her falling down braids and the terrible state her clothing was in.   
 _Of course I would meet an elvish princess while I look like I've been rolling in the grass outside.  
  
_ _She looks so perfect!  
  
_ _How can someone look so perfect.  
  
_ "Miss Baggins. I'm so happy to meet you!"   
 _You are?  
_ _  
_"Of course! Ada has had much to say about his visits with you."  
 _Shite did I say that out loud?  
  
_ Arwen's eyes twinkled _"_ No, I read it on your face."   
Bluebell felt her face grow hot "I'm so sorry. I seem to have lost the ability to keep my thoughts from my face. I was just taken by surprise and didn't think a lady of your standing would be interested in meeting little me. I was also thinking I should kick your father for having me meet you when I haven't had a chance to bathe properly."   
  
Laughter made Arwen's crinkle at the corners and she seemed to glow with merriment but maybe that was just Bluebell's eyes.   
"Your candidness is most delightful, Miss Baggins. I apologize for Ada springing this visit on you but he thought you might be more comfortable amongst other females for the time. As far as bathing goes I am more than happy to take you to our bathhouse and assist you."   
  
  
The bathhouse was everything and more that Blue could have hoped for, there was plenty of hot water and the tub was shallow enough at one end that she could sit to wash without fear of sinking. There was every scent of soap and hair oil imaginable; she had so much fun going through them with Arwen and giggling like school girls. She almost laughed herself sick when Arwen told her that the twins had only given the Company the floral scented oils so all the dwarrows smelled like a garden.   
She was hesitant to disrobe in front of the elleth but the apprehension was short lived as she discovered all the things she had in common with her.   
They both loved books, and music, and sweets and baking. The last part she was able to wrangle a promise to be shown the kitchens the next day so they could bake together.   
  
  
Arwen was very intrigued by Bluebell, she was not like anyone she had ever met and she had met Belladonna. Bluebell had her Mother's fierce spirit and feisty attitude but there was also something grounded about her that made her seem older than her 39 years. There was another aspect to Bluebell the made her heart ache, Bluebell seemed to be determined to not to grow attached to anyone nor need anyone's help no matter the situation.   
It was obvious that she was fond of the dwarrow that made up the company she traveled with but she seemed to shut down when her emotions became involved, which happened often when they were discussing the journey so far.   
 _Miss Baggins is quite the puzzle.  
  
_ _What could have happened that she won't form an emotional connection with anyone?  
  
_ She didn't know that she would soon be getting the answer to her question and it wouldn't be anything like she was expecting.   
  
"Could you help me? This blasted button is stuck."   
Arwen could see what was causing the issue; the button on the waist of the hobbit's skirt was cracked and snagging on the material.   
"Of course, Mellon."  
  
Arwen knew of the injury to Bluebell Baggins back but she hadn't been prepared for the scars across her buttocks. The stripes started at the upper curve and carried on down to the back of her thighs.   
Arwen had seen marks like that before but never before on someone gently bred from a place as safe as the Shire.   
"Miss Baggins, can I ask a personal question?"   
There was subtly stiffening to the little hobbit's spine as she made her way into the closest sunken tub, her shoulders rose before she said "You may but I reserve the right to not answer."   
"Where did you get those marks? Is that why you left the Shire?"  
  
The thin shoulders sagged in the heated water and her leaf shaped ears seemed to droop like the petals of flowers that needed the rain. But she didn't turn to face Arwen.   
 _It's easier to tell your secrets to the water than a kind face.  
  
_ "i suppose I can answer that. I'm honestly surprised no one noticed them before now."  
  
Whatever Arwen had been hoping the explanation to be it wasn't the tale that Bluebell told her. By the time she had reached the end of it Arwen was ready to storm the Shire and Bree to set it ablaze. Instead she stepped into the water heedless of her robes and held the little hobbit who stood there weeping.   
  
  
Many hours later found Bluebell clean, warm and feeling oddly refreshed; telling her tale to someone finally had lightened her heart considerably and when she looked at Arwen, she didn't feel judged or pitied, all she felt was acceptance and understanding coming from her.   
"We should get ready for dinner."   
Disappointment was a dull ache in the pit of her stomach and she looked over at her now clean but still worn skirts.   
"What is it?"   
"I wish I had thought to pack something pretty to wear for dinner." she answered wistfully "I didn't think we would be having dinner anywhere near as lovely as here."   
That glowing smile was back on Arwen's face "What if I told you we still have some dresses that were made for your Mum? Ada always thought she'd make the trip again with your Da so he saved them."   
Bluebell couldn't help the giddiness that flooded her at the thought of wearing something so elegant as a elvish dress to dinner and the fact it had been her Mum's made it even better.   
  
  
  
Dwalin poked at the bits of greens on his plate while Kili and Ori whined next to him about the distinct lack of meat at the meal. Nothing but leaves to eat was the ruby on top of the shit heap for him, first he had lost his temper and came to blows with Thorin, then they couldn't find Bluebell anywhere and the damn elves just smiled whenever they asked where she was and acted like they couldn't understand them, and now still no Miss Baggins AND poncy music to go with rubbish green food.   
"I thought Miss Bluebell was suppose to be here?" pondered Dori.   
"I thought so too." agreed Fili "Uncle do you think something could be wrong and the elves aren't telling us."   
Thorin just growled and stabbed a lettuce leaf violently.   
"I'm sure Mistress Baggins is fine. Probably hip deep in books or something." he rumbled.   
  
"I don't think my hips are any of your concern, Master Dwalin." came a crisp voice from the door way.   
  
He would not admit that she had surprised him again, he would not admit that he had jumped a little when her voice had called him out. Nor would he admit that any snarky reply he had had died on his lips when he saw her, and he most definitely wouldn't admit to anyone that his day improved tenfold just by seeing her.   
She was a vision in light green gown that seemed to move in its own breeze, her curls had been tamed back with ribbons and little pins that glittered like stars in her hair. He almost hadn't noticed the lady elf next to her if Elrond hadn't cleared his throat and introduced her as his daughter Arwen.   
  
Bluebell was escorted around the table by one of the look alike elves and he had made to pull her chair out but Thorin of all people had beat him to it!   
"That color is most becoming on you, Mistress Baggins."   
She accepted the seat between him and Dwalin while blushing delicately.   
Thorin then proceeded to help her fill her plate, all while complimenting her choices!   
 _What in blue blazes is going on here?  
  
_ _Why is he fawning all over her?  
  
_ _She's not for him! She's mine!  
  
_ _Durin's beard she's mine...  
  
_ _Mahal fucking wept this cannot be happening.  
  
_ Bluebell laughed at something that Thorin whispered in her ear while shooting him a pointed look over her head.   
 _Bastard. I should have hit him harder.  
  
  
_ Bluebell wasn't sure what was going on but she was enjoying the attention that she was getting from Thorin, the noises that Dwalin was making behind her were all the sweeter. Every time she glanced at him he was either blushing all the way to his ears or he looked like he was considering murdering Thorin with a dessert spoon.   
She finished her third glass of wine as the meal was drawing to a close.   
"Careful Miss Baggins, Elvish Wine is very potent stuff." came a rumble from behind her.   
"So he does speak! I thought you were working on turning to stone like the trolls." she quipped smiling sweetly at Dwalin.   
"Hobbits, Master Dwalin can drink just about any race under the table." Gandalf informed them as he drew near. "Thorin, Lord Elrond would like a word."   
Thorin stood up from his seat beside her and she was actually sad to see him go; they were having such a lovely time. She was most definitely not expecting what happened next."   
"Thank you for the lovely dinner conversation. Perhaps we can pick it back up when I return?" and with that parting he kissed her hand and followed the bigger beings from the room.   
"Well..." she breathed pouring more wine into her goblet. 

  
Dwalin was seeing red, Thorin had  _kissed_ her hand!   
She had flushed prettily to the tips of her ears and then made short work of the goblet of wine she poured.   
"You'll be deep in your cups by the time he returns." he speculated.   
"Oh really?" she arched a amber brow at him "How much you wanna bet I'm not but you will be?"   
Her arch tone stung his pride as much as his black eye   
"You're on."  
He ignored the  _zing_ that went up his arm as they shook on it.   
"I want in on this!"cried Kili  
"Me too!" added Fili   
"But wait! What's the wager?" asked Nori.   
  
He did not like the look on her face "Loser has to answer any question the winner has AND take middle watch for a week."   
"DONE!" he shouted slamming his big hand on the table and tossing back his full goblet of wine. He didn't notice the way she jumped and shrank away from him but someone across the room did.   
"I'm not drinking but I put 20 pieces on Dwalin." announced Gloin dropping coins on the table in front of them.   
"Me as well! On Dwalin" shouted Oin.   
"Well I'm drinking and BETTING." laughed Bofur dropping down across from them with his own goblet and little stack of coins.   
"I will keep track of the betting." volunteered Balin gathering all the marks from the table.   
  
  
  
Thorin couldn't stop the small smile from gracing his lips as he made his way back to the dining room. Elrond had informed him that the map could be read in less than a week, Dwalin had looked like he was going to pop a blood vessel when he had been flirting with Bluebell and soon they would be on their way to Erebor.   
His smile only grew as he entered to the dining room and was welcomed with a scene of absolute nonsense.   
  
Bluebell was doing a lively jig while Bofur was leaning on the Elf playing a large harp singing what should have been a very vulgar song but he was so drunk that he was slurring almost every word. Kili was passed out leaning against Fili who looked about 9 sheets to the wind intoxicated and was only being held up by leaning on a sleeping Ori's back. Dori was sipping a glass of wine, looking disapproving of the whole thing and Nori was nowhere to be seen. Thorin really hoped the star haired dwarf wasn't off robbing their host blind.   
Gloin and Balin were laughing loudly off in the corner watching everything while Oin seemed to be napping, and Dwalin, well Dwalin was trying to stand but couldn't seem to get his legs under him. His nose was as red as a strawberry and he was grinning like a loon.   
"T'orin's back,Missus Blue... Blue flower! I w-won!"   
"Oh really?" she purred whirling over to the the big dwarf.  
"Yes!"  
The little lass leaned in close to Dwalin and Thorin suddenly felt like he was intruding as she softly caressed Dwalin's beard.  
"I think I've won seeing as how you can't stand."   
Quicker than either could blink Dwalin fastened his lips over hers and then fell back in his seat.   
"N-no but I-i" and whatever it was that he was going to say never happened as his eyes rolled back in his head and he slid under the table.   
The Hobbit stopped her dancing and walked over to greet him, her cheeks flushed and her eyes merry   
"Hello Thorin, hope your meeting went well. Excuse me."   
He didn't know what to think when she went over to Balin and held her hand out, he was even more surprised by the large purse he handed her!   
"Good night all!" she chirped "Tell Dwalin I'll see him around lunch." she smiled and danced from the room.   
  
Once she was out of sight the pair shared wide eyed looks "Yavanna's tits! HE kissed her!"   
"Honestly Thorin, such language." Balin chided him while trying to not laugh.   
"Do you think he'll remember? We can't let him forget that!"   
"Laddie, I don't think he'll be forgetting kissing his One for the first time for the rest of his days."  
"I dunno, Balin, he's pretty drunk."   
"I also don't think Miss Baggins will let him forget it either."   
  
  
Lunch time found said Miss Baggins in the kitchens, singing merrily while she stirred a bowl big enough for her to sit in. Apparently the elves never made anything in small batches.   
 _He kissed me!  
  
_ _All be it he was extremely drunk but he kissed me!  
  
_ _But do I deserve someone like him?  
  
He deserves someone better than me.   
  
What will he think when he finds out my secret?  
  
_ _Should I tell someone?  
  
Balin?  Maybe.  
  
Thorin? I don't know he'd understand.   
  
_ _Ori? He's been so kind to me.  
  
_ She realized that she wanted to share this with her dear friend, that she needed to talk to someone about it; needed to finally let the wound bleed and heal.   
Feeling resolute in her decision she turned her attention back to her baking.   
  
  
Dwalin was almost positive  _Aule'_ was using his head as an anvil and had replaced his tongue with a piece of sandstone.   
He awoke still in his clothes from the night before sprawled across his bed like he had been dropped there. The smell of sour wine seemed to be everywhere and then he realized it was coming from him.   
 _Pretty sure my sweat is nothing but wine.  
  
_ _Sweet Yavanna's tits what did I do to myself?  
  
_ "Good afternoon, Mister Dwalin!" crowed Kili as he threw the curtains wide letting the early afternoon sun hit him directly in the face.   
"Dammit, Kili!" he roared blinking away the sun spots in time to see the youngster sprint from the room and slam the door; the noise was like a pick ax in his temple.   
  
He shed his clothes as he staggered to the bathing room attached to their rooms and sank into the full basin.   
He leaned his head back against the cool stone as the water soothed his aching body and let his mind replay the events of last night.   
 _How much wine did I drink?  
  
_ _How much wine did Bluebell drink?  
  
_ _Bluebell.  
  
_ _Did I win the bet? Or did she?  
  
_ _What am I forgetting?  
  
_ Shaking the water from what little hair he had, he stepped from the tub and strolled naked to his pack, pulling out his spare trousers and a green shirt.   
Light green,  _like Bluebell's eyes until she's kissed.  
  
_ _Bluebell... Sweet Mahal did I?  
  
  
_ Panic washed over him and brought clarity to his wine soaked memory.   
 _Thorin. He was there.  
  
  
_ Thorin knew Dwalin would be a bear after a night of drinking like that, he always was. He had not been expecting him to act like an actual bear when he threw open the door, roaring his name.   
Dwalin looked unhinged, water dripping from his beard on to his shirt, bare foot and unbraided as he bellowed "Thorin!" while his eyes searched the Company for him.   
 **"Murkhûn,** what is it?"   
  
It was a good thing he knew Dwalin meant him no harm bearing down on him like that, or he would of had his sword out in a blink. Unarmed or not the big warrior was fearsome looking.   
"Did I kiss her?"   
  
  
  
Bluebell found Ori sketching in one of the gardens well away from where the Company was staying.   
"Master Ori, what are you doing all the way over here?"   
The scribe jumped and looked around furiously before his gaze landed on her.   
"Miss Baggins! I was just seeking some peace and quiet away from all the yelling." 

She sat down next to him "It's Mistress Baggins actually."   
Ori looked at her quizzically "What do you mean?"   
She sighed, finding the words stuck in her throat. "Mistress is what you call married Hobbit females."   
"You're married?"   
Ori was looking at her like she had grown an extra head and she hated it.   
"I am or well was. I'm a widow." tears burned under her eye lids as she tried to blink them away.  
"I'm so sorry, Mistress Baggins. i can't imag-"   
"I'm not crying because I miss him!" she waved off his condolences.   
"What?" now he looked very confused.   
"I- you have been the kindest, dearest friend to me on this journey and I just need someone to talk to. I'm not crying because I miss the bastard. I'm crying because I'm scared this will change how you treat me and you've been such a blessing this trip."   
  
  
Ori had very little experience with females in general and even less with crying ones. Part of him wanted to shout for Dori but he knew that wouldn't help Bluebell at all. His heart gave a little flutter when she told him how much his friendship meant to her and knew that he held their friendship just as dear.   
"Mistress Baggins please, you can tell me anything. I truly value our friendship as well."   
She pulled a hanky from the basket beside her and dabbed at her weeping eyes.   
"Well then please call me Bluebell or Blue." she gave him a soft smile.   
"As long as you call me Ori." he returned her shy smile.   
"Oh! I made scones and tea, would you like some?"   
"Of course."  
  
They munched and sipped in silence for a while before Ori could no longer ignore the questions burning a hole through his brain.   
"What do you mean you were married? Were you married long? Why do you call him a bastard?"   
Bluebell gave a shaky laugh and held up a hand to hold off any more questions.   
"I knew I couldn't distract you with food. Lets see, where to begin."   
She shifted next to him tucking her feet underneath her goldenrod colored skirt  
.   
"I was married about 9 years, my grandfather thought it was a good idea since I was so close to my majority to marry me to one of his friends."   
"What! Why would he want you married before you came of age?"   
She cleared her throat "Well my father died when I was a tween during what we called the Fell Winter. He was protecting me and my mother from Men that wanted us for slaves. Then my mother only made it another 9 years before she faded. I was 29 so very close to my majority and I already knew how to run our properties. Grandfather felt it was better that I marry rather then be put under someone's guardianship when I was used to so much freedom."   
Ori thought his head might explode at the injustice of it all.   
 _How could he think forcing her to marry was the right idea?  
  
_ _And so soon after her mother had passed away!  
  
_ _Do these Hobbits not value their females?  
  
_ "How could he do that to you?"   
She shrugged "He felt it was the best idea and I was too shocked to argue. I thought Mum had set it up for me to be alright on my own but he's the Thain so he went against it and my father's family agreed with him."   
"That's not right!" he almost shouted in outrage.  
"I agree."  
"How long were you married? What happened to your husband?"   
Tears clouded her eyes and she went back to staring at her lap "We were married almost 3 years before he died. He had a g-gambling problem and would enter games at the Green Dragon in Bree with the Men that stopped there. He usually had good luck but more than once he lost and I was used to bail him out of trouble." she looked up at the tree branches above them and the tears flowed down her cheeks.  
"But the last time even I couldn't save him, not that I wanted to but they caught him cheating. And well you know the ways of Men when they are cheated. So I became an orphan and a widow before my 33rd birthday."   
 _What did she mean she was used to save him?_    
  
He gave voice to that questions before he could swallow it. The look she gave him spoke volumes as she answered "He would use time with me as a betting chip, I tried to refuse at first but that didn't end well for me."   
She pulled her skirt up to mid thigh and he could see the healed scars on the side of the leg closest to him.  
"No." he breathed.   
No Dwarrow worth his salt would ever touch a female in anger and if he did, her family saw that he met a swift end. He told her as such as rage simmered in his belly at the thought of his beautiful friend being touched like that.  
  
"Yes and he said that if I told my Grandfather or family he would tell them that I wanted it and I liked it. He would paint me out to be a pervert and use it as grounds to divorce me, and take Bag End from me. So I stayed and if it was possible I paid my way out of having to sleep with them but there was no escape." she sounded so hopeless as she shared her tale with him.   
Ori moved on instinct as he pulled her against him in a tight hug while she cried. He had the distinct impression this was one of the first times she had been able to fully grieve all that she had lost so he held her there in the garden.   
  
She drew back with a small laugh and began to dab at him with her handkerchief. "Oh dear, I've gotten you all wet."   
He shook his head as he tucked one of her curls behind her ear "It's alright. I don't mind."  
  
Ori stood and offered her his hand  "I need to speak to Dori about something. Would you like to join me in checking on the others? See how their hangovers are?"   
That got a laugh from her as she took his hand to pull her to her feet "Oh yes. I can't wait to see how Dwalin is? Think Balin has told him he lost the bet? I made him cookies already to soothe any sore feelings."   
"You are too kind to him,  _mizimith."  
_ She smiled softly "He's sweet when his mouth doesn't get in the way."   
"That is the best description I have ever heard for him." he laughed. 

 

Shouting was echoing down the corridor as they drew near and Ori slowed his steps as the words became clear.   
" **You are being an idiot!"  
** _That sounds like Thorin. What is going on?_

**"I can't believe you didn't stop me! You know how I feel about her!"  
  
"How should I have known you were going to kiss her?"  
  
"This is ridiculous! Do you know how many of us would give our left testicle to find our One even if they weren't a Dwarf?"  
  
"A one is a blessing from Mahal!"    
  
"You lot stay out of this!"  
  
  
  
** _Is Thorin yelling this at Dwalin?_  
  
Other voices joined in, almost all of them were shouting that Dwalin was being touched and that it was obvious to everyone Dwalin was falling for her. _  
  
Her, who?  
  
Wait the only her with us is... Bluebell.   
  
Did Thorin kiss Bluebell last night?   
Or  
Did Dwalin kiss her?  
  
 **"Shazara!"  
**  
  
_ Ori wasn't sure what he was expecting when they rounded the corner but it wasn't Thorin and Dwalin standing toe to toe red faced roaring at each other. All commotion stopped as everyone stared at Bluebell except Dwalin who was so intent on getting Thorin to listen he fairly screamed in Westeron "I don't care who would give a testicle! A HALFLING can not be my One!"   
  
"Right. Well this is awkward." stated Bluebell in the silence that followed.   
Dwalin looked very much like he was going to throw up right there on the marble floor as she walked up to him with her basket on her arm.   
"These are for you." she informed him as she handed the big warrior the basket and the barest trace of a whisper reached Ori's ears; whatever she said made the tattooed dwarf pale under his ink and Thorin cursed most creatively as she turned to basically flee back the way they had come.   
He caught sight of Nori standing in the shadows behind the King.  **  
What did she say?** he signed.   
 **That she knew No one wanted her here but she hadn't thought he felt that way too. Did you know he kissed her last night after you lot passed out?  
  
"DORI!"  
  
  
  
 **Balin has reached his limit with his little brother's nonsense.   
He snatched Dwalin by the ear like when he was a little pebble and marched him into the shared room.   
"Ow OW OW! Let go!"   
"Out!" he ordered a dozing Kili.   
"What? But I wasn't doing anything!"   
"I don't care right now, laddie. Out!"   
"Hrmmph ffiiiine" the prince whined stomping out the door.   
" **N** **adadith,** this has to stop."   
"But-"   
"Let me finish. I have had enough of this. You don't want a gift from Mahal himself, fine. You want to live the rest of your hopefully long life with the knowledge you turned your back on the one being who would love you without ceasing, Fine. You want to throw away something that I would give anything to have back, so be it. But I cannot stand by while you act so callously towards Miss Baggins. You will apologize and make this right."   
  
He left the room quickly to give Dwalin time to think on how to fix this with their Burglar but also because he needed the air.   
"Ragna, I miss you." he whispered to the twilight sky and the first star of evening winked back at him as she knew.   
  
  
"You want to do what?"   
"I want us to adopt Bluebell. She needs us, **Nadadel**. She's all alone."   
"But Ori we barely know her."   
" _You_ barely know her. I know her quite well."   
"I think we should, Dori. With all this nonsense going on she needs a fussy, proper mother hen like you to worry about her."   
"I think that is the nicest thing you've ever said about me."   
"So you'll put forth the petition?"   
"Aye, **Nadadith,  **we'll approach Thorin shortly." 

  
Dwalin bit into one of the cookies Bluebell had handed him right after he had made himself out to be the biggest  **bin'adad** in Arda at least and couldn't help the groan that it brought from him. It was sweet, and chewy, and there were chunks of what he was sure were nuts and cream chocolate. The taste was divine and it reminded of the kiss he stole the night before.   
That kiss.   
It had been everything he had hoped for and it was a small favor his legs chose to give out at that point before he had ravished her mouth. Her lips had been so soft and she had tasted of the sweet wine they were drinking and also something sweeter that he couldn't put his finger on. The thought of it drove him to want another kiss, just so he could taste that again.   
Bluebell's sad eyes flashed through his mind and the cookie in his mouth turned to ash as shame made his chest tight.   
"I knew the others didn't want me here but I thought you were different." whispered through his thoughts and the sadness gripped him tightly.   
 _She belongs with us.  
  
_ _How do I fix this?  
  
I'll bake her something!  
  
  
_"Master Oakenshield, I want a word with you!" a sharp female voice that sounded so similar to Dis rang through the garden where Thorin was currently reading (re:hiding) in. He looked all over expecting to see his little sister glaring daggers at him instead it was Lord Elrond's daughter.   
It rooted him to the spot so that even as the incensed elleth bore down on him.   
 _Mahal save me from pissed off females.  
  
_ "How could you?" she snapped at him, her eyes flashing like lightening.   
"How could I, what!"   
"How could you treat Bluebell like that after all she's been through?" she snarled.   
"What are you talking about?" he demanded.   
 _If I'm going to be yelled at for something I would at least like to know why!_ and he told her as such.   
The lightening died in an instance "You don't know."   
"Know what! What are you talking about?"   
"I need to go." and with that she was gone, long brown hair streaming behind her.   
 _So much for answering my question.  
  
_ _What in Durin's beard was she going on about? What has the Burglar been through?  
  
_ His train of thought was hijacked by Dwalin suddenly appeared in front of him.   
"What do you want?"   
Dwalin looked excited "I know how to fix things with the Burglar."   
"Excellent!"   
"Do you know how to bake?"   
"What! Why are you asking me? Why not ask Bombur?"   
"Well..." Dwalin looked sheepish.   
"He told you 'No', didn't he?" Thorin groaned.   
"Pretty much." he admitted.   
"So you have managed to piss off the kindest, gentlest dwarf in the whole company?"   
"Aye, looks like it. Bofur and Bifur also had some choice words for me as well. I can't find any of the Ri brothers."   
Thorin ran a hand though his hair and shut his eyes "Fine. I'll meet you in the kitchens in an hour."   
  
"Thorin, a word, if I may."   
" **Mahal zai abra!"  
  
** "Alright, I'll come back."   
"Dori, wait, its fine you just startled me. Its been a busy afternoon."   
The silver hair tailor sat next to him "I see."   
Thorin sat up and opened his eyes. Dori looked even stiffer than usual sitting there and Thorin realized that he was wearing clothes he had never seen before.   
"What's going on, Dori?"   
"I, Dori, son Vori, daughter of Khori, would like to petition the King for the honor to adopt Bluebell Baggins."   
 _Knock me over with a feather.  
  
_ "Have you presented this suit to Mistress Baggins?"   
"Not yet. I wanted ask your feelings on it first."   
 _This would actually make things much easier on all of us but Dwalin.  
  
_ _The Brothers Ri would never let anything happen to their sister and she'd be well protected.  
  
_ "I think it is a great idea and if Miss Baggins accepts I'll be more than happy to do the ceremony."   
  
  
One thing about Hobbits is that if they don't want to be found they are almost impossible to find... Unless you're a couple of elf twins.   
Bluebell didn't want to see anyone so she had deliberately gone down two levels and had found what appeared to be a forgotten garden nestled between some fountains. There she sat and tried to not replay the words Dwalin had shouted.   
"My One cannot be a Halfling!"   
 _What is a One?  
  
_ _I wonder if it's like a Cariad.  
  
_ _Perhaps I can ask Ori.  
  
_ _What did I do to make Dwalin feel like that? I thought things had been going alright.  
  
_ _I'll help them reclaim their stupid Mountain and then I'll go back to the Shire where I won't be a burden to anyone.  
  
_ "There you are!"   
"Miss Bluebell! We've been searching everywhere for you!"   
Elladan and Elrohir came popping through the bushes like some giant bunnies and sat down next to her.   
"What a great hiding place!"   
"This would be perfect for hiding from Lindr!"   
She craned her neck to look up at the twin terrors "Are you avoiding your lessons again?"   
"No!"   
"You're avoiding something." she accused.   
The twin terrors turned large brown eyes on her "We just wanted to spend time with our favorite Hobbit before she leaves us for a grand adventure while we're stuck here with nothing to do."   
Ella- no Elrohir laid his head down in her lap.  
"Soon you'll be off with a company of Dwarves and we'll be stuck here with Lindr and our sister." he pouted.  
Laughter surprised her but she could tell that was what the brothers wanted all along. "Oh you two! You certainly know how to make a lady feel wanted."   
  
They sat there in the shade for quite awhile trading stories until it was more Bluebell telling them stories of her family while the twins lounged next to her.   
She stopped as sweat trickled down her neck  and between her breasts. "Oof it's getting quite warm. I wish there was a stream to cool off in."   
Elladan popped up like a cork from a bottle of champagne "We have something better!"   
"What's better than a stream?" she asked as Elrohir pulled her to her feet.   
"A fountain!" they crowed together.   
  
The fountain outside her hiding spot had a wide large basin that had water trickling down the back wall over natural looking river stone. The basin was large that she was sure all the Company could have fit with room to spare.   
The lads sat down and began to unlace their boots.   
"Oh sweet _Yavanna_ we can't wade in fountain!"   
"Why not, Mistress Bluebell?"   
Being asked that question by someone thousands of years older than yourself really made it seem like a dumb question.   
Before she knew it Elladan and Elrohir were standing in the ankle deep water trying to convince her to get in with them. It was very odd seeing them barefooted; she almost felt like she was peeping on them.    
"Come on, Mistress Bluebell. It's very nice and see not even that cold." with that one splashed the other soaking his tunic.   
"Honestly, Brother? Was that necessary?" and in a blink an eye Elladan had his tunic off.   
"Oh my goodness!" she squeaked resisting the urge to cover her eyes. She knew other races weren't that concerned with seeing others bare and that it could be deemed an insult to cover your eyes.   
He was impressive standing there in just his breeches, with his long brown hair blowing in the breeze, twisting around his bare torso that was lean but well muscled.   
  
And almost completely hairless.   
  
That was a new sight.   
  
Hobbit men usually had a little chest hair and a bit more on their pudgy, round stomachs leading to their manhood, and of course leg hair that melted into their foot hair.   
Men were a bit hairier and more muscled.   
What she had seen of the Company they had muscles to spare and a touch of pudge depending on the dwarf, but most had a covering like moss on a stone from collar bone to belt.   
To see an elf bare was something new and she wasn't sure she found it all that attractive honestly.   
  
"Alright, alright before you lot come and get me."   
She stepped in and sighed as the cool water swirled around her calves. She hiked her yellow skirt higher to save it from the water and stepped carefully around exploring.   
"What's that on your leg, Mistress."   
"We are standing in a fountain together, please call me Bluebell."   
They broke in matching smiles.   
"Bluebell, what is on your leg?"   
"Oh it's a scar."   
"Oh!"   
"Do you have many?"  
"How did you get such a mark?"   
  
She sighed and lift her skirt a touch higher so they could see the marks stripping her flesh on the backs of her thighs.   
"I got them from my husband."   
  
  
When she returned to the ladies wing there was a basket sitting by the door with her name scrawled on the tag. When she peeked inside there was a bunch of daisies and what looked like slightly smoking scones but she wasn't too sure.   
 _How sweet of Kili and Fili to try and brighten my day.  
  
_  
  
Dori caught Bluebell at dinner that night.   
"Mistress Bluebell, can I have a word, please?"   
Her eyebrows rose but she stood and took his arm "Of course, Master Dori. Lead on."   
He studied her as they walked to a sitting alcove overlooking an even larger garden. She was really very pretty with her honeyed curls and heart shaped face. Her eyes were the loveliest shade of light green he'd seen outside a stone, she was slight and curvy, she had impeccable manners and was quite intelligent.   
  
She sat and patted the spot next to her for him to sit.   
"What did you want to speak of, Master Dori?"   
 _Why am I nervous?  
  
_ _Ori is positive she'll accept.  
  
_ "I have spoken with my brothers and we would like to adopt you into our family."   
She stilled next to him and her breathing seemed to pick up pace "Really? Why would you want me?"   
 _What kind of question is that?  
  
_ "My dear, you are the first person to actually be interested in what my younger brother does, and you talk to him about it. You are kind, and caring, and smart, and beautiful. Why wouldn't we want you for a sister?"   
Before he could move he had a sniffling hobbit wrapping him in a bear hug "No one has ever said anything so nice to me. I would love to join your family."   
He felt a warmth in his chest that he hadn't been expecting and he could have sworn he heard a feminine voice whisper  _"thank you"_ in his ear.    
  
The next day was a flurry of activity as Bluebell was joined to the Ri family and that night Elrond was able to read the map. They learned where the secret door was and just how little time they had to get there.   
They packed and left that night.   
  
Dwalin wondering all a long why Bluebell hadn't said anything about the basket he had left her.   
  
  


****   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ever had a full body hangover? It is the worst!   
> Oh lord the angst has gotten away from me! This is what I get for listening to AFI while I write. 
> 
>  
> 
> Welsh translations
> 
>  
> 
> Khuzdul  
> hubma rakit~ asshole (literally bottom hollow)  
> Lulkhel~ Fool of all fools. 
> 
>  
> 
> Sindarin  
> Mellonen~ My Friend.   
> Daro te~ Stop that!  
> Man carach~ What are you doing?


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is light at the end of the frustrating Dwalin tunnel!  
> Dwalin just has to do everything the hard way and get hit in the head a couple times. 
> 
> Everyone learns Bluebell's secret and love her even more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning for Domestic violence.

_Why hasn't she said anything about the treat I left?  
  
__Shite did I remember to sign my name?  
  
__Did she not like them? They were a little burnt.  
  
__What if she doesn't accept my apology?  
  
_  
  
They traveled throughout the night and didn't stop until late afternoon; Bluebell dropped where she stood and used her pack for a pillow not even worrying about a blanket.   
  
She woke as the sun was getting low, the sky beginning to take on streaks of pink with the coming twilight.   
Around her the others were setting things up to spend the night there, Bombur and Bofur were trying to start a fire while Bifur brought them more wood, Kili and Fili appeared to be sparring off to the side while Thorin watched. She couldn't tell what Gloin and Oin were doing, Balin was writing while talking to Ori, Nori appeared to be throwing knives at a tree but she didn't see Dori anywhere nor Dwalin.   
_How odd.  
  
__Where could they have gotten to?  
  
  
_ "Nori has told me everything about Bluebell supposedly being your One."   
Dwalin stopped in his tracks "Oh?"   
"Yes."   
"And you've come to tell me to stay away from your new sister?"   
"No I've come to see what your intentions are towards her. I saw that kiss."   
"I-i don't know."   
"You don't know, Master Dwalin? I find that hard to believe." he could hear the disbelief thick in Dori's voice.   
"Well ya see, I have no interest in having a One."   
"How do you know that she is your One? Have the dreams started or a mark? How do those of the line of Durin even know when they've met their One?"   
  
_I don't think he means sex dreams.  
  
_ "Er... no dreams, I don't know about a mark either 'specially with all these tattoos, and we know after we are a part of something they're passionate about. But even if I had a sign I've no interest in havin' a One."  
"It is that or is it that you have no interest in, how did you put it? Ah, yes, Having a Halfling for a one?" something new was creeping into the older dwarf's voice and Dwalin wasn't sure he liked it.   
"That is being taken out of context. I was angry and acting irrationally. There is nothing wrong with her being a Hobbit."  
The silence stretched between them with only crickets and other night sounds to fill the emptiness.   
He turned to find Dori studying him with a not very friendly look in his eye. He had the distinct feeling that Dori was judging him and from that glint he was being found wanting.   
"I swear my issue has nothing to do with Bluebell being a Halfling, and it is fully all me."   
_Why am I defending myself?  
  
  
  
_ "What are you working on, Bluebell?" Ori parked himself next to her, book in hand per usual.   
"Mending. I must have caught my pants leg on something who know when and ripped it."   
"You can sew?"   
She smiled at her new brother "Of course! I learned it from my Mother and Aunts, all Took daughters learn to sew and all Baggins daughters learn to crochet."   
Ori had his book out and was furiously scribbling in it again "So you do a lot of needle work?"   
"Yes, _Brawd annwyl._ Do you have any mending that needs to be done?"   
"What did you call me?" Ori was looking at her peculiarly.   
"Dear brother."   
He beamed at her but that curious glint was still there "In what language?"   
"Hobbitish."   
"I didn't know Hobbits had their own language!"   
"Of course not!" she laughed "We keep it a secret on purpose. And _we_ only have  _one_ secret life." 

"You win." he chuckled, quill still flying across the paper.   
"Now do you have any mending?"   
He tapped the feather against his mouth "Nope. Dori did it while we were in Rivendell. He was a tailor back in Ered Luin."   
"Alright, I'm going to go see if the others have any."   
"Even Dwalin?"   
She smiled down at Ori "Yes, even Dwalin."   
"You are too nice." was his parting response.   
  
No one had any mending so she was left to sit beside Ori and watch as the day ended, and the stars came out to play.   
_This would be a lovely evening to share with someone.  
_    
"So Bluebell, tell me beside having a secret language what are Hobbits like?" Ori inquired from his spot next to her, Nori had planted himself on the other side of her and was sharpening a few of his many knives. She still wasn't sure where Dori was but she was happy with two out of her three brothers.   
_I can share it with my brothers.  
  
__That's better than a Cariad any day.  
  
_ "Well," she hugged her knees to her chest "Hobbits are all about home and to them that means comfort. We love good food, good drink, a good time and family; Most never travel farther than Bree if at all and they love to gossip."   
Rustling came from the edge of camp and the branches parted to reveal Dori and shortly thereafter Dwalin. The eldest Ri made his way around the fire and sat behind her. When she looked up at him he smiled and pulled a comb from one of his many pockets.  
"Let me guess. You'd like to get rid of my elvish braids?" she smiled.  
"If you don't mind, **N** **amadith."** he gave a sheepish smile.   
"Go ahead." and she leaned her head back to make it easier for him to reach.   
"I see." observed Ori " What about Hobbit courtships?"   
She couldn't help stiffening before shooting him a pointed look before looking at Dwalin who was talking to Thorin in a low voice across the fire.   
"What about them?"   
"Are they complicated?"   
"Depends on your definition of complicated" she chuckled "It starts with a invitations to go on walks and if those go well then its a gift of baked goods or a bouquet of flowers that express intentions."   
Ori scowled in confusion "How can flowers express anything."   
"Flowers are a language all their own! Didn't you know that?"   
She looked around the camp at all of them shaking their heads "No" except Balin.   
_How does Balin know the language of Flowers?  
_  
"you can say many things with flowers. The one bouquet I received was quite the mixed bag but it's not like it mattered." She stated.   
"What was in it?" this question came from Kili which surprised her. She didn't think anyone was listening but her brothers.   
"Oh, a little of everything. I honestly think he picked them on his way to the Great Smials of Tuckborough. My Grandfather even accused him of picking them from the neighbor's garden on his walk there. There were Bluebells presumably for my namesake, Geranium, some grass, Narcissus, a Peony, and a hydrangea cluster. Not all Hobbits put a lot of weight behind the giving of flowers, just the older families like the ones I'm from. Though I think that bouquet was prediction of sorts..." she trailed off realizing she almost revealed more than she wanted to.   
"What do you mean, Blue?" asked Dori softly from behind her.   
"Oh, nothing" she waved her hand dismissively "Just thinking out loud."   
"Did you receive any other bouquets?" asked Thorin from across the camp.   
She wanted to shake her head but a light tug from Dori stopped her "No. Just the one. I didn't have many suitors."   
"Why ever not?" cried Gloin from where he sat with Oin. He was so loud that his brother almost tipped over on the log they shared.   
She felt her face begin to heat and missed having her curls free to hid behind "Well I'm not considered that attractive amongst Hobbits and the ones that were interested were only after my inheritance."   
"That's madness! How are you unattractive? What's wrong with those halfings?" demanded Bofur.   
"Well-"   
"That's just daft! You should have had scores of suitors!" shouted Oin.   
"I- I g-" she felt her ears begin to burn as the other kept exclaiming about there being something wrong with the other Hobbits.   
"Honestly, they must be touched to not find you attractive." announced Fili.  
She couldn't take it anymore; the embarrassment and shame making her feel like her hair was going to catch on fire.  
"I was too different!" she shrieked at them before immediately clapping her hands over her mouth. Tears caused everyone to blur out of focus and the looks they all had was too much. She stood pulling her hair from Dori's still hands and rushed from the camp not even noticing which direction she was going until she couldn't hear them anymore.   
There she sat on a rock under the stars and cried.   
She cried from embarrassment, and reopening old wounds, and airing her insecurities.  
   
_"You''ll never guess who just got engaged." chirped her Aunt Mirabella as she poured tea for Bluebell.  
__Her youngest Aunt had popped in for tea and to gossip as well as check on Belladonna.  
__"Lobelia! Can you believe it? Otho Baggins popped the question just the other day!"  
"Wow, I had no clue they were even courting."   
"Really?" Mirabella quirked a ravens wing brow at her niece. "I thought you and Lobelia were friends?"   
"We we-are. I've just been so busy with Mum and managing things that I've had to miss a few tea times."   
{like 10}   
"Hmmm"   
They drank tea in silence for several minutes.   
"So." Mirabella broke the peace "are there any fellows coming around for you?"    
"No, Auntie."   
{There had been Bosco Proudfoot but once he found out she knew how to read he stopped coming by.}   
"I'm sure there are some nice lads I could introduce you to in Tuckborough. Just don't scare them off with your brains. A man doesn't like to be made to feel dumb, Bluebell. Here eat some more scones, you're looking positively thin."   
"Yes, Auntie."   
"I'll arrange it with your Mother that you both come stay with us next week. No trousers! And none of those dowdy dresses that look like they should be dust rags and if I spot a book you'll be in for it! Also try to hide your ears, they're a touch too pointed. Took blood is strong in you, my dear."   
  
{too much Took not enough Baggins. My ears are too pointy, I'm not plump enough to grow healthy babes, I'm too smart, I shouldn't know how to write more than my name, and now I'm a poor dresser. Thank you Aunt Mirabella. How about you give me a paper cut and put lemon juice in it?}  
  
At least the dwarves find me attractive.   
  
But none of them want me like that either.   
  
_ "Are you alright?" came a deep voice from the darkness.   
  
  
Dwalin had stared after her along with the rest of them when she had fled in tears.   
"I didn't mean to make her cry." commented Bofur quietly.   
"Neither did I." added Gloin looking as red as his beard.   
"I thought I was paying her compliment." stated Fili, he looked so ashamed even his braided mustache was drooping.   
  
Her brothers looked like deer caught in the torch light and Dori raised an eyebrow at him.   
"I'll go after her." he informed the rest before he stepped out of the firelight and into the silvery gloom of the ferns.   
  
She had made it a ways thanks to the almost full moon bathing everything in moonshine. He would have found her even with no moon but it certainly helped save him from tripping in his haste as the sounds of her sobs grew.  
He had stood there and watched her cry in the moonlight and he honestly wasn't sure he'd seen something that made his heart hurt more.   
When her sobs seemed to quiet some he made his presence known   
"Are you alright?"   
She was trying to dash the tears from her cheeks as he stepped closer to her "Yes. Yes I'm fine. Just silly girl nonsense."   
He didn't believe her for a hot second.   
"Mistress Bluebell, are you alright? The lads, they meant no harm. They thought they were being polite and helpful."   
She gave a shaky laugh "I know, they just managed to hit on some sensitive things."  
"They've realized that now." he chuckled.   
"I'm sorry they must think I'm foolish." she pushed her hand hand through her half up hair and revealed a pointed ear. He had never noticed how pointed they were till then.  
_Did she keep them hidden in all that hair?  
  
__They're adorable! Not like those knife earred tree shaggers.  
_  
"Not at all. They're worried you're mad at them."   
She looked up at him puzzled "Why would I be mad at them? They can ask questions. I was the one that didn't handle it well. I appreciate that they think most of the Shire is daft for not finding me attractive even if I don't agree."   
It was his turn to look confused at her "Why do ya say that? You are very attractive for not being a dwarf. Why, give ya a beard and you'd give Gloin's wife a run for her money though don't tell him I said that. He'll want to fight to defend her honor."   
He could tell even in the darkness that she blushing brightly.   
"That's very kind of you, Master Dwalin."   
He could tell by her voice that she thought he was honestly just being kind and it was a new kind of frustrating for him.   
  
She made to stand from the rock and suddenly pitched forward with a cry; Straight into his arms, plastering her against his chest.   
"I'm so sorry Master Dwalin! I caught my toe on something sharp! I-I."   
Her eyes were dazzling in the moon light, it seemed to wash the color from them to where they just glowed with no color.   
"Your... your eyes are the color of moon glow." she whispered.   
He shut them quickly, feeling a scowl pulling his features down and he braced himself for what he thought was coming next..   
_Always back to my fucking eyes.  
  
__Next she'll say they're not natural._    
  
"No, please  _Cariad_ , they're beautiful." she breathed.   
They snapped back open against his will and looked down at her.   
_"Llygaid golau Lleuad"_ she sighed and before he could stop himself, he pressed his lips to her.   
  
She made a soft sound of surprise and then surprised the hell out of him as she pressed back and twined her arms around his neck, molding her body against him.  
Her lips were so soft he wasn't sure he'd ever felt anything like them before, she tasted sweet and a scent filled his sense to where all he could think of was her. He tightened his arms around her and turned his head for a better angle on her mouth; she eagerly let him and was soon nibbling on his lower lips. Surprise was his once again as she stepped up on the low stone so that could reach him better and her little moan almost undid him right there. He buried his hands in those honey colored curls and she gave a little gasp which gave him the perfect opportunity to delve in with his tongue. She pressed against him even tighter and he could feel everything as his hands roved her body. He didn't notice she had stiffened when his hands had reached her arse until he squeezed it and she broke the kiss.  
" **bunmel."** he crooned.   
"I'm sorry." she squeaked before darting away into the night leaving him standing there with empty arms and a confused heart.   
  
  
No one said anything to them when Bluebell first arrived in camp breathless, hair completely unbraided, lips swollen and what looked like a touch of whisker burn on her chin and all that happened when Dwalin stepped into the firelight was the subtle exchanging of coins between Gloin and Bofur while Nori and Dori tried to set him on fire with their eyes.   
Ori had ushered Bluebell to her bedroll and was softly talking to her behind them.   
Thorin just shook his head and went over to where Dwalin was sitting with his brother.   
"Please tell me you didn't do what I think you did."   
He blushed all the way to his tattooed scalp and before he could move Balin cuffed him up the back of the head. "What was that for!"   
"you've spent the better part of two weeks fighting and bellowing to any that would listen that she isn't your One and the minute we get on the road again, you go and kiss her! Where is your head,  **Nadad?"**  
The big warrior groaned and buried his head in his hands "I don't know what happened. We were talking and she truly thinks she's unattractive! Then she tripped and she was in my arms and she called my eyes beautiful and then said something in Hobbitish. Before I could form a thought I kissed her an- and she kissed me back! _Sweet Mahal's beard_ it was amazing, she fit against me like we were two pieces of a locket and she made these noises that set my blood on fire. I've never experienced that before! No offense, Thorin."   
He met Balin's eyes over Dwalin's head and just smiled while Balin shook his head.   
"What have I done?" he groaned between them.   
"Kissed your  **Khebabmudtu?"**    
"I don't even know if she is my **Khebabmudtu**. Dori pointed out earlier that I've not been dreaming, nor have I started getting a mark or-"  
"Ah! You enjoy her cookies more than anything I've seen you enjoy and you know she's passionate about cooking." Balin reminded him.   
"That's just one thing, **Nadadel**. Durin's always have all three."   
  
Thorin couldn't help rolling his eyes at the weak protests "Give it time, **murkhun**."  
  
The Valar had other plans for the group...   
  
Time for them to talk never came as the next day they awoke to thunder heads forming between the mountains as they climbed and before long they burst.   
  
Bluebell couldn't believe her eyes as chunk of stone the size of Bag End came hurtling to crash into the mountain side above them.   
  
Next thing she knew the ground was no longer under her feet and she was clinging to the wet rock for all she was worth. Suddenly a hand clamped on to the back of her jacket and she was heaved upwards, and into Dwalin's arms. She clung to one side of him as he pulled Thorin up and to safety as well.   
"I thought we had lost our Burglar there for a moment."   
Thorin froze her with the anger that burned in those blue eyes  
"She's been lost ever since she stepped out of her door! She doesn't belong with us!" he roared into the storm.   
"Uncle! Uncle! We found a cave!" cried one of the princes.   
She sniffled miserably as she trudged along behind Bofur, holding tight to his belt.  _  
I thought he liked me.  
  
I guess I don't belong with them, after all.   
  
Once this storm breaks I'm going to go back to Rivendell to wait for Gandalf.  
  
  
_ Going back was never an option in her heart and it soon became a nonissue as the cave floor opened to swallow them all.   
  
  
Dwalin thought his heart stopped when the Goblins swarmed them and he heard Bluebell scream.   
The wretched little things herded them forwards towards a humongous, flabby, thing that was singing so off key he wanted to cut his ears off.   
   
"Bring me the youngest ones!"   
  
Time slowed as he watched the goblin grapple with Bluebell before they both fell off the bridge and out of sight.  
  
Rage that hadn't known he could feel coursed through him as they followed Tharkun and cut their way through the goblin hordes. He didn't feel pain, he didn't care what was in front of him, it was going to die.   
  
  
"What has roots as nobody sees,  
is taller than trees, Up, Up it goes,  
And yet never grows."  
  
"A Mountain. My turn, Thirty white horses on a red hill,  
First they champ,  
Then they stamp,  
Then they stand still."   
  
"Teeth! We have 6! Our turn, Voiceless it cries,   
Wingless flutters,   
Toothless bites,   
And mouth-less mutters."  
  
"Wind! That's an old one. A box without hinges, key or lid yet inside golden treasure is hid."  
  
"Eggs it is! This thing all things devour;   
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;  
Gnaws iron, bites steel;  
Grinds hard stone to meal;  
Slays king, ruins town,   
And beats high mountains down."   
  
"I need more time."  
"WHAT!"   
"Time! That's the answer! You can't eat me. Right, lets see... What have I got in my pocket?"   
  
  
Bluebell was never so happy to see sunshine as the moment she leaped unseen over Gollum's head and shot through the door she had just seen her dwarrow run out.   
The world was a washed out grey and muted colors as she ran down the mountainside wearing the peculiar gold ring she had found in that awful cave. She could still smell the damp and fishy smell on her jacket, and the iron tang from her head wound. She could feel the blood drying in her curls.  
  
She slowed her run as she neared the group and could hear Thorin having words with Gandalf.   
"Where is Mistress Baggins?" she smiled at the worry she could hear in her old friend's voice.   
"I'll tell you where she is! She's on her way back home by now! She saw the opening and took it." thundered Thorin halfheartedly.   
"Here, now. You don't know that." defended Kili.   
"I saw her fall with a goblin from the bridge." she heard Dwalin inform them.   
  
She pulled the ring from her finger and the world jumped back into sharp relief, and she stepped around the stone. "I'm right here!"   
Dwalin looked like he was going to pass out and Thorin turned red in what she assumed was embarrassment before biting out "Why did you come back?"  
"I thought about going home or at least back to Rivendell where it was safe and warm. I do miss my warm Hobbit hole with my books and fireplaces but I couldn't go. Because you don't have a home and you all deserve one so very much. And I signed up to help you get your home back and I'm not going back to mine until you have yours, and you're safely in it!" she found herself yelling the last bit with her finger inches from Thorin's regal nose.   
  
Whatever his reply would have been was lost in the howls of wargs.   
"Out of the frying pan." swore Gandalf.   
"And into the fire." finished Thorin.   
  
She couldn't believe orcs had found them again as she raced along side her brothers down the mountain and she might have swore when one launched itself over her at Nori. Without thinking she thrust her little 'letter opener' up and opened the belly of the warg. But she wasn't fast enough as one of its huge paws caught her back with its claws.   
_What is it with things catching me in the bloody back!  
  
__Bleeding hell, if we survive this I'm going to talk to Dori about a thicker coat to protect me.  
  
__And now I'm supposed to climb a Mahal forsaken tree?!  
  
_ Before she could give voice to that complaint Nori had her under the arms tossing her up to Dori before he followed them up.   
"IT IS RUDE TO TOSS YOUR SISTER!" 

She felt a little like a squirrel, albeit a terrified, gonna have a heart attack squirrel as she jumped from tipping pine to tilting pine while the Orcs tried to knock them to the ground. Then Gandalf had the bright idea to set everything on fire!   
And it worked for about five seconds until a warg bigger than any she had ever seen and as white as snow sprang from the flames with a white Orc on its back.   
"It can't be." she heard Thorin cry from next to her.   
Before they could move Thorin was running down the trunk to fight that huge thing!   
  
  
Dwalin was hanging on for dear life to his branch while he watched his best friend take on a foe that he swore Thorin had killed back at the Battle of Azanulbizar. He cried out with the others as Thorin was knocked down and Azog's huge warg bit down on his chest.   
_This is it. This is where Thorin falls.  
  
__Before we even make it to Erebor.  
  
__Maybe the others were right that this Quest is cursed.  
  
__At least I met my One on it.  
  
__Where is Blue- What the fuck is she doing?  
  
  
_ She was standing on the trunk of the tree, curls moving the heat waves created by the flames to the point her hair looked like flames itself, her little sword out and glowing blue.  
"Blue-"  
She was racing down the tree to place herself between the white warg and Thorin. He didn't even see her gut the first Orc and gave shout of joy when she killed the white warg. New energy seemed to pump threw his veins and he was able to lift himself up on to the tree proper. He raced through the flames with the princes and joined Bluebell in the fight to protect their King.   
_She is magnificent!  
  
__How did I ever become so blessed to have her as my One?  
  
_ They all moved as a unit to keep the creatures away from Thorin's prone form and soon they were all covered in blood.    
He lost count of the orcs and wargs they killed before the Eagles came and scooped them all up and into the night.   
Thorin just hung in the claws of the big eagle next to him and he tried to ignore the heart wrenching cries of the Princes trying to rouse their Uncle.   
  
  
Bluebell had not been expecting Thorin to come to calling her name and she had gone to him fully expecting him to tell her off and send her packing.   
"Didn't I tell you this was no place for a Hobbit? Didn't I say you didn't belong? That you would be a burden?"   
She tried to ignore the tears that were making her eyes burn.  _  
I will not give this stubborn jackass the satisfaction of seeing me cry._

 _If he sends me packing I am going to give him such a reaming!  
  
  
_ She let out a startled squeak when he pulled her into a tight hug as he stated softly "I have never been so wrong."   
  
  
Dwalin had never been so torn in his life.   
He wanted to make sure Bluebell was alright but knew that he needed to help Thorin down from the Carrock. It was far too windy and cold for them to camp up there plus they had lost most of their supplies in the Goblin tunnels.   
He watched as her brothers fawned over her and Dori switched between fussing at her and telling her off for putting herself in dangers way to begin with.   
Ori was on one side of her and Nori on the other as they helped her navigate the huge steps carved into the side of the rock.   
  
Once they reached the ground he gave himself the slight peace of mind of going to check on her.  
"How are you, Mistress Baggins?"   
She smiled up at him looking tired but alright despite the blood on her forehead. "We were just in battle together, you can call me Bluebell, Master Dwalin."   
He couldn't stop the smile that creased his face and crinkled the corner of his eyes "As long as you call me Dwalin."   
_"He's smiling! I've never seen him smile like that before!"  
__"Did he get hit in the head, Fee?"  
__"Do you think we should tell Oin that he might be sick?"  
_ "Oh boys" called Bluebell sweetly.   
The princes popped up from their hiding spot in a nearby bush "Yes, Miss Baggins?"   
**Whack!**   
"We can hear you."   
  
  
They set up camp with what little supplies they had and then Oin began tutting at each of them. Thorin was first but Bluebell was informed she was next.   
"I saw that warg catch you! Go wash up and then come here and let me look!" Oin ordered her away to the stream near by.   
She grimaced as she looked at her reflection, the edge of the cut on her head not hidden in her hair was turning a lovely shade of eggplant and she could only imagine what the rest of her looked like. She stripped off her jacket, shirt and trousers, she discovered there was very little holding her breast band together and her underwear wasn't much better.   
She decided to scrap them and see if Dori could help her make new ones.   
_The dwarves are alright with nudity then I shall adjust._ she thought at she walked nude to the water.   
She stepped into the cool stream and began scrubbing her hair then her body and finally her clothes when there was a commotion from behind her  
  
Since Dori was helping Oin with stitching shut some of Thorin's deeper punctures and the other brothers were searching for medicinal herbs Dwalin had volunteered go get Bluebell.  
"I sent her to wash up!"   
"Oh excellent idea!" cried Kili and Fili darting off towards the stream.   
Bofur, Bifur and Gloin all followed at a more sedate pace to the water.   
  
Dwalin wanted to blind them all for standing there in water that came to her knees, naked as the day she was born stood Bluebell.   
"Hello!" she called to them before going back to washing her clothes.   
"Mistress Baggins, you're naked!" shouted Fili slapping a hand over Kili's eyes.   
She put her hands on her hips "Yes, that is typically how you bathe."   
"But you were so shy before!"   
"I now understand that nudity isn't that taboo in your culture so I'm adjusting. However if you lot keep staring at me like that I'm going to change my mind!"   
  
She turned to wade deeper into the water and what Dwalin had thought would be a fantastic view of her backside instead horrified him as he saw the scars covering her buttocks and the back of her thighs, not counting the healing scar from the trolls on her right side ribs and now deep scratches from a warg on her left.    
_What in the bleeding hell happened to her?  
  
_  
"Miss Bluebell, Where did you get those scars?"   
  
She had known the minute she had turned her back to them that one of them was going to ask, that's why she had done it, honestly.   
She took a deep breath before turning back around to see the stunned faces of her friends and she was surprised to see Dwalin looking absolutely thunderous.   
She made her way to a comfortable spot in the shallows where she sat and faced them.   
"I got them from my husband."   
  
  
Dwalin felt his heart stop and he thought he might puke.   
"What husband?" asked Kili taking the words right from his mouth.   
  
Bluebell looked up them and her eyes were so sad that Dwalin held his breath waiting for her answer.   
"Well former husband. I'm a widow."   
She took a deep breath and he felt like she was breathing for both of them at that moment.   
"What- How- Where?" Kili couldn't seem to pick a question and dropped to the sandy shore and held his hands up.   
The little hobbit laughed "Alright Kili, I get it. Now I am only going to tell this once so lets move to where everyone can hear us."   
He tried not watch as she buttoned up her damp shirt with no breast band underneath but it was so hard and when she wiggled into her pants with no small clothes he wasn't sure he could any harder.   
  
  
"I was married shortly after my Mother passed away. I was 29 and my Grandfather the Thain, felt that since I was so close to my majority that I should just be married off instead of having a guardian appointed. Females cannot own property, manage estates or anything unless they are widowed or divorced. And since I had no suitors of my own, Grandfather decided to marry me to one of his oldest friends. I was married to Filibert Bolger in due course and I had hoped that it would eventually turn into love but I was naive, impressionable and very mistaken.  
Filibert put on a good face for everyone but behind closed doors he was a right bastard. He had a gambling problem, you see and he liked to join in games at the Green Dragon in Bree with the Men that stayed there. Thankfully most of my money was protected since it was left to me by my Father. Filibert was lucky sometimes but more often then not he lost and when he lost, he  _lost._ He began to use me or more specifically time time me as a bet."   
She paused to look around while taking a sip of water. The company was silent aside from Oin who was mumbling under his breath while he dressed Thorin's wound but the King was signing everything she said so Oin knew what was going on.   
They all looked simply horrified. Gloin opened his mouth and she held up her small hand "Please don't. If I stop now I'll never finish it without crying."   
She took another breath "At first I refused to go to the Men he lost me to. And that's when the caning began. He used a flexible piece of reed and proceeded to stripe me till I bled and begged for him to stop. So I went and I hated it.   
Sometimes I could buy my way out but not always and if he found out that I paid them off he'd cane me again. I threatened to tell my Grandfather and he told me if I did he would tell the Shire that I wanted it and I liked it. He would paint me out to be a pervert and a sexual deviant, and use that as grounds to divorce me. To take away Bag End and all my social standing. So I stayed, and every time I did something he didn't like which was often he would whip me."   
  
"How did he die?" Dwalin asked quietly while the rest looked on; Kili had tears streaking down his face into his dusting of whiskers and Fili didn't look far behind him.   
  
"He tried to cheat at cards in Bree; They caught him and you know how Men are, they wanted to make an example of him so they killed him right there in the street in front of the Inn like a dog. I can quite honestly say he deserved it and I was not heart broken when they brought me the news. Since what happened to him was due to his shameful behavior he isn't buried in the Shire so I didn't have to pay to have him buried. He's buried in some cemetery of Men outside Bree. I've never gone and never plan to. And that is how I became a orphan and a widow before I reached 33."   
Before she could say anything else she found herself sandwiched between Kili and Fili who kept murmuring how sorry they were and that they wished they had known her back then so they could have saved her. Once the boys released their grip on her the rest of the company came forward to tell her how sorry they were, how they wished they could kill Filibert all over again, and that it just wasn't right what her grandfather had done.   
  
  
That night Dwalin dreamed for the first time and he dreamed of Bluebell learning of her husband's death. After she shut the door to the sheriffs she had laughed until she was sick and then she sank down against the door sobbing. He awoke to Balin shaking him and he was stunned to find he had been crying in his sleep.  
 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't resist the Princess Bride reference. 
> 
> Khuzdul  
> Bunmel~ Beauty of all beauty. 
> 
> Welsh
> 
> Brawd Annwyl~ Dear Brother  
> Llygaid golau Lleuad~ moonlight eyes
> 
> Language of Flowers.  
> Bluebells~ Humility  
> Geraniums~ Stupidity  
> Grass~ Submission  
> Narcissus~ Egotism  
> Peony~ Shame, Anger  
> Hydrangea~ Heartlessnss, Frigidity.  
> (I found these flower translations on Pinterest.)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They make it to Beorn's where there are some more stolen moments and then it's on to Mirkwood.  
> The Valar have decided that things are taking to long and assist the Company in moving things along.  
> And shenanigans ensue.  
> Bluebell finally realizes that Dwalin is her Cariad but she's not sure she is worthy of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I reposted this chapter since my husband beta'd for me again and pointed out some glaring issues I couldn't ignore**  
> I'm blown away and thrilled with all the kudos and comments! Thank you so much! 
> 
> Nessa~ One of the Valar. The Dancer.  
> Ulmo~ Lord of the Waters-Valar.  
> Aule (Mahal)~ The smith, father of the dwarves  
> Yavanna~ Mother of the Hobbits, Lady of the Earth, Aule's wife  
> Irmo~ Lord and Master of Dreams

Bluebell looked around the room she was in.   
_Where am I?  
  
How did I get here?   
  
Where is everyone?   
  
  
_ Her ears twitched forward as she heard voices coming through the open door.   
_Sounds like Dwalin and Balin.  
  
_ Unfamiliar warmth grew low in her belly at the thought of the tattooed dwarf. She smoothed her hands down her front in an attempt to perhaps push away the new feeling but only brought a gasp of surprise when her hands hit silk instead of the rough road worn cotton of her traveling clothes.   
She was wearing a silken nightgown that was cream in color with bold red lace trimming the top and along the edge the stopped right below her knees, flowers that looked to have been painted in a bold stroke on the material over her right breast and on the bottom along her thigh. Her hair clacked with beads as she turned her head to look at her surroundings more.   
Stone walls, dark, heavy looking wooden furniture, a huge fireplace dominated one wall, there were plush carpets on the floors and furs covering the bed where she sat.   
" **Thutrel."**  
There in the door way stood Dwalin and he wasn't wearing a shirt.   
  
Her mouth ran dry and words seemed to have fled her grasp as she drank in the sight of him stalking into bedroom. He was magnificent, all rolling muscle and grace born from years of practice; his nipple rings winked in the firelight and his skin seemed to glisten. She made a pleased sound as she gazed at his tattooed torso and wanted nothing more than to trace the geometric designs with her tongue.   
He closed the distance between them in no time and pressed her back into the pillows and she let him as her hands trailed up over his shoulders to tangle in his hair.   
She wasn't afraid, there was no disgust churning in her belly and she didn't want to shrink from his touch.   
She burned for it.   
She didn't even know it was possible to burn someones touch and she couldn't help the happy sigh that escaped her as his hand caressed her thigh before traveling higher, taking her nightgown with it.   
"My beautiful wife" he whispered as his lips kissed their way to the tip of her ear.   
She had expected a jolt of fear but instead the heat in her belly just grew and she felt herself becoming slick as she rubbed against his legging clad thigh.  
   
" _Cariad"_ her moan ended with a high pitched mewl as he nibbled the tip of her ear. Fireworks flashed behind her closed eyes and she gasped when he suddenly pulled away only to kiss his way down her throat stopping briefly at her breasts. His tongue and teeth on her sensitive peaks had her fairly vibrating; his hot breath through the silk over her belly made her shiver and she watched him as he eased himself between her legs, his large hands framing her sex.  
His eyes were like molten silver as he locked eyes with her and his breath was so hot against her skin she thought he was going to scorch her.   
"What..." her spine bowed as he laid his mouth on the most sensitive part of her in answer and she couldn't help the cries that he pulled from her throat. The heat in her belly grew into an inferno and just when she thought she was going to burst into flames, something broke inside her and she came apart, she saw stars and felt like she was melting under the heat of his mouth.   
  
She jerked awake and laid there for a minute staring at the stars above her, and listened to her heart race. She felt hot and sweaty, yet exhilarated and relaxed for the first that she could remember in forever.   
_Sweet Yavanna's toes what was that?  
  
__That wasn't sex was it? Is that how Dwarves do it?  
  
Does this mean Dwalin is my Cariad?  
  
__Who can I ask?  
  
  
  
  
_ Gandalf insisted that he had a friend that lived nearby where they could rest and recuperate but it seemed the Wizard's definition of 'nearby' and theirs were vastly different.   
  
It was just past midday when Thorin ordered a break and they all dropped to rest in the shade of a huge Oak tree.   
Bluebell sank down next to Dori and fanned herself with a handkerchief, they sat in companionable silence until she couldn't help but break it. Her curiosity was burning through her brain and she just couldn't hold it in anymore.   
She glanced around looking for Ori since this was not a conversation for his young ears and it was miraculous that none of the dwarrow were nearby!   
  
Little did she know that Nori was reclining in the branches above them.  
   
"Dori, can I ask you a question?"   
He didn't even open his eyes from where he was laid back against the tree trunk "Of course,  **Mizim."  
** She took a deep breath "Howdodwarveshavesex?" she expelled in a rush feeling her ears burn with her blush.   
_Oh my giddy Aunt did I really just ask him that!  
  
__Maybe he'll say no.  
  
Or he'll tell me it's inappropriate.   
  
Or he'll laugh at me.   
  
Oh sweet peas why did I ask that!  
  
_  
  
A few things happened in quick succession...  
Dori turned a remarkable shade of crimson all the way up to his silver braids and opened his mouth several times like a fish out of water which was then followed by a loud **THUMP**  
Nori landed not far from them laughing so hard he couldn't make any sound, and she rushed to him thinking he was having a fit until he finally found his voice to roar with laughter.   
"I. Can't. Believe. You. Asked. Dori. That." he cackled.   
Dori puffed up looking scandalized "And who should she have asked,  **binadjan bin'adad?"**    
That sounded like an insult to her but the way Nori crowed with laughter she suspected it was something that only siblings understand.   
  
Nori finally composed himself and sat up, Dori was still a smart shade of pink as he made his way to sit in front of them.   
"She should have asked me." he answered calmly "I know far more about sex than you,  **Nadad."**    
The magenta color returned to Dori's cheeks as he sputtered "Well- I- What makes you think that?!"  
"I have lain with maidens of Men, Dwarrow and even a couple Hobbit which is a sight more than just Ori's Maths tutor and the random drunken fumbling you've done with Bofur."   
A vein throbbed in Dori's temple while Bluebell sat there with her hands over her mouth.   
_Bofur? Really?  
  
__Seems like a good match for my fussy brother.  
  
__Maybe I can play matchmaker..._  
**"Funud."**    
  
  
Nori wasn't sure what he had expected Bluebell to ask him but it hadn't been about oral sex.  
Apparently oral sex on females is something Hobbits didn't do though the males fully expected it to be done to them.  
She told him about her dream which even with her sparing him some details would make it incredibly hard for him to look Dwalin in the eye for a while.   
Thorin called their break to an end so they gathered up their things and start following Tharkun through the woods once again.  
   
They walked at the back of the group so most wouldn't hear the conversation and he worked on explaining to his little sister that pussy eating was very common amongst the dwarrow and some preferred that instead of actually intercourse.   
"Really?" she sounded very skeptical while she kept her eyes forward.   
"Yes, really. No dwarf can or would force another to do something they are not comfortable with."   
He watched her face as emotions raced across it before she hid them behind the mask of indifference that she wore most of the time.   
"That sounds... like a haven."   
They walked in silence for some time while Bluebell seemed to digesting everything.  
"What if once you decide to be physical with someone... you change your mind?" her lilting voice reached his ears.  
He stopped her with a hand on the shoulder and turned to face her. She kept her eyes trained on the ground until he placed a gentle finger under her chin and lifted till their eyes met. The careful hope in their green depths pulled at his heart and he pulled her into a light hug "You can say No at any time and if they are an honorable dwarf they will stop and not argue with you. And if one did all you would have to do is tell me and I would make them pay. I know Dwalin to be very honorable indeed." he winked at her with that last part.   
The breath was squeezed from his lungs as she hugged him back fiercely.   
  
  
  
Gandalf's friend was absolutely not what Bluebell had been expecting at all but was so much better in some ways.   
Beorn was bigger than anyone or anything Bluebell had ever met but she discovered that he had a gentle soul and though mistrustful of Dwarves he wouldn't turn away them away until he heard their story. He had taken to calling her "little bunny" which she wasn't sure she liked and she knew that others did not.  
Dwalin had all but growled at the skin changer when he had picked her up with one hand and placed her on his shoulder! She really didn't like being picked up by beings so much bigger than herself but she couldn't argue with the view it afforded her as he walked back to his large cabin.The lands around Beorn's home were so lush and vibrant that Bluebell felt at ease for the first time since they had been in Rivendell, giant honey bees buzzed lazily amongst the enormous blooms and the animals were so helpful they wanted for nothing while they were there.  
   
She and Gandalf had relayed their tale to the large man while they all sipped tea and had bread with honey.   
He stood and strolled to the door with more grace than she had expected someone so large to have.   
"That is a very good story and if it proves to be true you will have my thanks and help. You may stay the night while I go to verify your tale. Do Not Go Outside after dark and make sure you keep the door barred. I will sleep in the barn when I return. Wait until the sun is fully up before you venture out."  
And with those instructions he was gone into the twilight.  
  
  
Oin had insisted on doing a thorough checking over of everyone with Thorin going first and Bluebell resisting till her brothers and the princes frog marched her to where the healer was in the bathing room.   
"I swear I'm fine." she protested.   
"That didn't work for Thorin and he's the King. What makes you think it's going to work for you?"   
Surprise broke her concentration at stubbing up when Dwalin of all people responded to her protests. Her brothers had started to ignore her protests after the first minute when Ori poked her where the warg wound and she had gasped in pain.   
They pitched her into the room and blocked the door so she couldn't dart out.   
"And have you been seen, oh great dwarven warrior?" she shot at him where he was reclined against the far wall.   
His eyes immediately dropped as the princes began laughing.  
"He's been dodging Oin and tossing everyone else under the cart!" announced Kili with a wicked grin.   
She planted her hands on her hips and leveled a gimlet eye on the bald dwarf.   
"Really?" her hairy foot began to tap "I'll willingly let Oin check me over if Dwalin goes next."   
  
**"Fuzak"**  
"Watch your mouth in front of our sister!" shouted the Ri brothers while Kili sniggered behind his hand.   
  
She tried not to hiss as Oin poked at the injury to her back but couldn't hold back the shriek of pain and surprise when it felt like he touched it with a hot iron. Tremors shook her frame as she tried to hold still and cold sweat beaded her forehead. Darkness began eating at the edge of her vision and there was a rushing in her ears as she fought against the pain. She thought she could hear someone yelling but then again maybe not.    
  
Her mind flashed her back to being bent over the foot board of the bed and pain radiating up from her thigh and heat growing on her backside. She held her breath waiting for the next strike of the reed across her flesh.   
But it never came.   
  
"Breathe, Bluebell. You have to breath." came a soft rumble like summer thunder and it washed through her, breaking the grip her memories had on her.   
  
She sucked in a breath and Oin prodded something else back there; she arched away away from his touch and found herself against a solid chest. Instinct she wrapped her arms around the dwarf and gripped the back of his shirt.   
"I'm sorry, lass but you have an infection starting. Who knows what was on that things claws, nasty buggers. I have to clean it out and stitch it up. I don't have anything to numb it though..." Oin's voice trailed off.   
She took a moment to breath normally and looked up to see who she was holding on to.   
She had been expecting to see Dori or one of the Princes but it was Dwalin gazing down at her; their eyes met and she knew then that he would stay with her, that he wouldn't leave to her to suffer alone and that he would comfort her however he could. She nodded at him and he looked over her at the healer.  
"Do it."   
  
  
  
Dwalin wasn't sure what had made him go in the room where Bluebell was, something felt as though it was pulling him and her shriek only made him move faster. Her brothers were sitting by the door but Ori was sleeping with his head in Nori's lap and Dori looked very green and the sounds of her pain only made him paler.   
Bluebell was sitting with her bareback to the door on a small stool, hunched over with her elbows braced on her thighs. The wound on her back looked awful, it was over her shoulder blade and ribs, it had to be as long as one of his hands and a very angry red color. Oin was barely touching it and she was shaking like a leaf.   
He knelt in front of her and felt alarm jolt through him at the color of her face.   
_She's holding her breath!  
  
_ He took  her by the shoulder and said her name but she showed no recognition so deep in her own thoughts she was.   
He leaned down till his mouth was by her ear "Breathe, Bluebell. You have to breathe."   
  
Her strength was impressive as she wrapped her arms around his middle and fisted his shirt while she buried her face against him.   
_Thank Mahal I removed my armor.  
  
__How can she be so strong when she's so small.  
  
_ Her eyes widened in surprise when she realized it was him that she was hugging so tightly and he could see her resignation at Oin's statement that this was going to hurt immensely. Their eyes locked and he knew she was asking him to stay with her, to not leave her and in that moment he wouldn't have left her for anything, not even Thorin. She loosened her grip on him and nodded for Oin to go ahead.   
  
It seemed like once she knew what was coming she could handle the pain just fine. He had the sneaking suspicion that Oin didn't tell her before what he was doing back there and took the lass by surprise as he was wont to do to all of them. He knew that approach was necessary with some of the company because otherwise they'd run or try to punch the older dwarf.   
He wouldn't have even known that she was in pain if there wasn't a faint trembling in her arms as she tried to crush him and he could feel her soft gasps dampening his tunic.   
Oin was done in no time since he didn't have to fight with a squirming patient for once and Dwalin was surprised he put honey on the wound!   
  
"All done, lass."   
She slowly released her hold of him and sat up, he immediately felt the loss of her touch and mourned it.   
"Thank you."   
  
  
Tharkun took watch that night since he was the most rested of the group and Dwalin found himself bedded down between his brother and Thorin staring at the ceiling beams, his mind finally having a chance to sort through everything that had happened. Despite learning that Azog was still living and still wanted to end the line of Durin, despite the fact that the little Hobbit lass they all had doubted had rushed to protect Thorin when none of them could, despite the fact that he should be bone tired, all he could think about was her story and her scars. He'd have never thought such a gentle folk could do something so terrible to one of their own and then that the bastard had almost gotten away with it!   
_How could her grandfather just marry her off?  
  
__How could they not have known that man was a complete bastard that didn't deserve her?  
  
__How could she have kept all that hidden for so long and act like it was nothing?  
  
__How could I possibly prove that I deserve even a minute of her time?  
  
__Easy, even if I wanted to I couldn't.  
  
_ "Copper for your thoughts." Thorin's voice drifted to him.   
He rolled to his side to face his King "Thought you were asleep."   
Thorin cracked a eye "You think too loud."  
He snorted "Aye or you're just nosy. Or are you jealous since no one can brood but you."   
One corner of Thorin's mouth turned up at that "Ya sound like Kili."   
"Do not."   
"Yes you do. Now are you going to tell me what's keeping you from getting the first real nights rest you've had since Rivendell or just keep deflecting and argue with me?"   
He scowled and hated that his friend knew him better than he wanted to admit.   
"Bluebell."   
If his eyes had been open Dwalin was pretty sure Thorin would have been rolling them at him "When are you not thinking about her? What about her this time?"   
"Did you know that she was widow?"   
"No. But I had an idea that she had been hurt by love."  
"Did you know her tale?"   
"I had heard Ori mentioning something about her being mistreated but I had no inkling it was to such a drastic extent."   
He really wanted to hit him with something hard right then.   
"Why didn't you tell me? You insist she's my One and yet you didn't tell me about something so important."   
All he received was a one shoulder shrug and the answer "Not my story to tell."   
"Why am I friends with you?"   
"Because no one else but your brother will deal with your grumpy ass."   
_Dammit he's right.  
  
_ Sleep rolled over him as he pondered Thorin's response. It felt like he blinked and suddenly he was in a garden in Hobbiton again.   
"Papa! Papa! Catch me!"   
Years of training were all that saved the small child as he caught it from where it had jumped from the garden bench. He stared down at the tiny being in his arms and was surprised when big silver eyes stared back.  
The little... girl? Had a head full of loosely curled black hair and leaf shaped ears poking out of it, there were freckles sprinkled across her nose and he could see a dusting of hair on her little feet.  
   
"Papa, toss me!"   
"Hyacinth stop roughhousing with your Adad and come in for supper!" called a very familiar voice thought the open window.   
A little lip stuck out in a pout as she wiggled to get down "Yes, Mama!"   
  
He followed the little pebble into Bag End and could see signs of a happy home all around him. There were boots by the door and it looked like a rack specially designed for Grasper and Keeper above them. A baby's cry carried up the hall to him and on instinct he turned towards it. He found the owner in a crib in the room where he had spent the night with his brother and Thorin, a tiny tyke with honey colored curls on its head and feet.   
" _Cariad_? Can you bring the girls here?" came the sweet voice again.   
He looked down at the little one snuggled against his chest "So you're a lass, as well?"   
He received a gummy smile that did something strange to his stomach and a tiny hand reached up to fist his beard.   
"Come on, Adad! Bella's hungry!" demanded the moppet in the door.   
Sure enough the baby was slobbering on his beard.   
"Alright, lead on _Mizim_."   
The girl was off like a shot down the hall, squealing the whole way like a mine cart that needed oil. He inhaled, bringing the scent of the baby deep into his lungs and into his heart.   
"Pity this is a dream. I can't imagine myself blessed with daughters."   
  
  
{Yavanna wanted to reach into the dream and smack him.   
Aule smiled "You know that would probably kill him and then where you be?"   
She wrinkled her nose at her husband and planted a hand on her hip "Then what do  _You_ suggest? This is to help your people, remember?"   
He stepped up beside her to gaze into Irmo's cauldron, stroking his beard as he watched one of his children dreams of his future with one of Yavanna's.   
  
"What if you had them dance together? Everything works out when you're dancing." came Nessa's tinkling laughter.   
Yavanna seemed to consider her sister's plan, a slender finger tapping her lips in thought "That could work."   
"I hate to rain on your idea but how when they won't touch each other? You can't keep tripping her." Ulmo pointed out.  
"Get them drunk." volunteered her husband.   
   
A soft cough broke their debate and they turned to look at their brother lounging in the grass at the edge of the clearing.  
   
"And what would you suggest, Manwe?" asked Yavanna with a look that suggested she doubted her oldest brother had anything worthwhile to contribute.   
"Simple. Ask Olorin for help." he stated leveling his blue eyes at them as if to say "why didn't you think of this before?"   
She hit her forehead with her palm as Aule cackled next to her "Bloody hell he has a point!"}  
  
  
Gandalf looked at the potted sunflower next to him and stroked his beard.   
_Well that's a first. A flower talking about something important.  
  
__Yes, Yavanna I know it's you.  
  
__I... I was kidding. I know your flowers always have useful news.  
  
__Dwalin and Bluebell?  
  
__Ah yes I've noticed the strands connecting them.  
  
__Are you sure that a good idea? Hobbits are incredibly fertile.  
  
__Of course that's how you made them.  
_  
_Uh huh. Uh huh. Yes, Ma'am.  
  
__Mahal and Manwe are agreeing on something? Alright I'll see what I can do while we're here.  
  
Mirkwood is not a romantic setting at all, I agree.   
  
_ He shook his grey head as the flower closed its petals and went to sleep beside him.   
Things were about to get quite interesting since he had no desire in getting on the bad side of any of the Valar let alone the top 3. He had enough going on here without Yavanna turning the trees against him and if it was supposed to help save the Dwarrow of Middle Earth so be it.   
  
  
  
The next day passed pleasantly with most of the Company lying about resting and enjoying not having the threat of wargs breathing down on them.   
Beorn had opened the great door that morning when Dori and Dwalin had removed the cross bar, and greeted them with the fact that he had discovered their tale was true. Three new Goblin heads on pikes at the edge of the garden seemed to attest to that as well.   
  
Bluebell spent her day resting and eating. It seemed like every time she awoke one of Beorn's animals was there with bread and honey or milk and some vegetable. By the time evening rolled around she was feeling marvelous and barely felt anything from her back wound but an intense itching which she mentioned to Oin.   
  
He was amazed when he removed the dressing that her injury looked weeks old and the stitches he had placed were what was causing the itching. He removed them all while wondering at the healing of Hobbits.   
"When we have enough to eat and plenty of rest we heal much faster then Men. How slow do dwarves heal?" she asked while he continued to snip and pull.   
"If Thorin takes it easy, I can remove his stitches in a few days but he'll still have to go slow or it could reopen or tear. It should be healed by the time we reach Dale."   
"That long? My goodness that seems a bit much."  
"Compared to your healing I imagine it does, lass. Can I ask ya something?"   
She sat up and fixed her shirt.  
"You want to know how I scarred when I heal so fast?" she guessed.  
  
He nodded as he packed away his ointments that were no longer needed.   
  
"If it's a clean cut we heal quickly and barely scar. If it gets dirty or it's a jagged cut or if something is say poured into it and not cleaned right away it'll scar. If it happens repeatedly then you get the scars I have."   
Oin stopped what he was doing and looked at her, horror at her words sinking showing on his grizzled features. "No."   
She tucked her shirt in when she couldn't take the sadness and pity that replaced horror on his kind face "Yes. When Filibert thought I was growing used to the pain of being caned he started throwing salt in the wounds."  
Before she could turn to leave she found herself pulled into a tight hug against the old dwarf. She fought the instinct to shrink away and forced herself to relax into the embrace. She reminded herself that Oin wouldn't hurt her and she soon was enjoying the snug embrace.   
"I would kill him again if I could lass." she felt rumble through his chest.  
"I know."   
  
  
They came down to what looked the beginnings of a great feast.  
The table was laden with food and pitchers of what Bluebell discovered were honeyed wine!   
She felt woefully under dressed for such a feast in her spare shirt and skirt with suspenders but then realized that she was lucky to at least have a change of clothes. Most of the company had lost their packs in the goblin tunnels and had nothing to change into.   
_I wonder if Master Beorn has any material I can use to sew myself some new undergarments and perhaps some clothes for everyone else.  
  
_ Soon the wine was flowing and the food all consumed when Ori brought out his pipes and started playing a jaunty tune that got Bofur to start dancing. Soon Bifur was drumming on the table and Beorn had produced a large fiddle from somewhere. She didn't know the tune but it didn't stop her from tapping her feet to the beat. Bofur pulled Dori up and had her stuffy brother dancing in no time.   
_I miss dancing.  
  
__When was the last time I danced?  
  
__I don't recall ever dancing with Filibert; our wedding maybe?  
  
_ "Care to dance,  **Namad?"**    
She smiled up at Nori "Of course,  **Nadad?** Did I say it right?"   
The smile that split his face was the best yes she could have gotten as he whirled her out onto the makeshift dance floor.  
   
The others joined in and she found that they were fine dancers even Thorin!   
Wine flowed freely and she found her self taking large gulps when she got near the table before being whisked off into another dance. It seemed like the others kept trying to get her into Dwalin's arms but the big warrior just smiled and passed her to one of the princes or she'd take that time to grab a drink of her wine.   
Gandalf took a turn dancing with her as things were winding down and so expertly spun her into Dwalin's arms that they couldn't avoid it. When they turned to object they found everyone but Beorn had vanished and all he could do was shrug and laugh before playing something more sedate on his instrument.   
It suddenly felt hotter than a smithy in the cabin so Dwalin looked down at her "Care to go for a walk in the garden?"   
She shot a look a Beorn and he nodded still playing some soft tune that she felt she should recognize. Dwalin ushered her out the door and into the moonlit garden where a sweet breeze cooled the sweat on her skin.   
  
  
Dwalin couldn't take his eyes off of her as they walked amongst the huge blooms that made up Beorn's garden. The moonlight gilded her and made her eyes sparkle like stars, the soft breeze carried her scent to him and the sound of her voice was music to him.   
"I've never seen blossoms so large and beautiful!"   
  
At the edge of the garden they found a spot with soft moss under the branches of  a willow tree where they sat to look at the stars.   
"It's so beautiful here."   
He gazed at her face turned up to see the work of Varda "Not as beautiful as you."   
She turned a stunned face to look at him.  
"What?" she whispered.   
"You are more beautiful than the stars to me,  **bunmel."  
** The smile he was treated to while tears glistened in her eyes made him feel things he had thought were long dead.   
"Oh,  _Cariad."_ she breathed still staring up at him.   
Somehow the distance seemed to be shrinking between them though he hadn't noticed either one moving.   
" **Thutrel."** he murmured as he brushed his fingers through the curls on her shoulder.   
" _Fy nghariad."  
_ He had no idea what she was whispering but it sent lightning bolts through his heart and he could think of nothing more than burying his hands in her curls and kissing those sweet lips.   
The soft moan he received was headier than the wine flowing through his veins. She surged to meet him and soon found her in his lap as he leaned against the tree trunk. She had her hands combing through his beard and hair as their kisses carried on until he broke it to gasp as her nails traced his torn ear. She smiled before she began to nibble where she could up to his ear where she gently oh so gently teased with her teeth.   
Sensations coursed through him that he hadn't never felt in the intensity and he wasn't one to be one upped as he pulled at her shirt to free her breasts.   
  
They barely heard the tiny plunks as the buttons let go and hit the tree behind them.   
  
She wiggled in his lap and purred at the feeling of his mouth on her breasts and he had to hold her hips before she unmanned him.   
A small part of him kept waiting for her to stop him, to say something to end this. He didn't want to push her from her comfort area nor have her think he was taking advantage of her.   
Soon small hands were unlacing his tunic and pulling it from him; he felt the bite of the tree bark but none of that mattered as Bluebell gazed down at him.  
"Are ye alright,  **Thutrel?"** as she stilled in his lap.   
She gave him another beautiful smile before she began to kiss her way down his chest to tease at his nipple rings.  
"Such a kind  _cariad, s_ o honorable." she purred as her hands drifted lower to the fastenings of his breeches.   
"Oooh Bluebell, we- we- you don't have to -  **Oh Mahal."** he lost all thought as the blood left his head and went straight to his hammer where she had her hand wrapped around it.   
"What was that, Dwalin?" she drawled.   
"You don't- don't have to do anything you're not- **Mahal zai abra!"**  
She had sank down on to his cock without the slightest hesitation "You don't want this?"   
  
  
Bluebell had never felt so full and the feelings she had for Dwalin felt like they were in her bones. He fit inside her like he was made for only her and it was torture to hold still as she awaited his answer.   
His grip on her hits stuttered and she thought his moonshine eyes were rolling back in his head as he growled "I do."   
She rolled her hips and swore her toes were going to curl.   
They found their rhythm there under the stars and she could honestly say she had never felt anything like it before.   
Seeing him thrusting underneath her made parts of her clench that she had never felt before and apparently he felt it too as he growled "Sweet Mahal, Bluebell. You're feel so good."   
He shifted under her and pounded up into her while he curled up to nibble at her bouncing breasts.   
"Ahhhh YAVANNA!" she shrieked at she felt something twisting inside her, growing so impossibly tight.  
His clever fingers slid under her skirt and touched her in such a way that she couldn't hold back the sounds that he drew from her throat.   
It felt like he had grown impossibly thick inside her and a hard thrust up broke whatever it was that was so tight inside her. She screamed her orgasm to the flowers as she rode the waves he had built for her.   
  
  
She came apart around him while he was still pumping into her but her pulsing sheath undid him and he came harder than he could ever remember shouting his release to the moon.   
He collapsed back against the tree panting and Bluebell fell forward on to his chest sounding equally out of breath.   
Contentment and happiness seemed to nestle into the hole in his heart as he held her there in the dark under the willow tree.   
_That was amazing.  
  
__Is that how it feels to lay with your One?  
  
__But I don't know if she is.  
  
__Oh sweet Mahal what have I done?  
  
  
_ {"That's it I'm going to hit him" Yavanna informed her husband. He held up a placating hand and motioned for her to keep watching.}  
  
  
Bluebell came back to herself slowly and realized she was lying on someone's chest and more importantly that someone was still  _inside her.  
__What have I done!_ she screamed inside her mind.   
  
_This isn't a dream! This isn't a DREAM!_  
  
She lifted her head and wanted to weep as she meet Dwalin's silver gaze. He didn't look any happier than she felt oddly enough and she found that actually hurt more.   
She scrambled off him and chose to ignore the slick feeling he left behind "I- I am so sorry."   
He stared up at her with a look she didn't understand and she looked down to see her shirt was hanging open baring her breast to navel. She grabbed the edges and tried to fix but found most of the buttons were missing.   
_Well this just gets better and better.  
  
Where the fuck did my buttons go?   
  
_ She pulled the edges around her and tucked them into her skirt to at least have a shred of coverage while he just sat there staring at her with those stupid, beautiful eyes.   
  
"I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I'm... I'm so sorry. Please don't." he was moving to stand up and she held out her hand to stop him.   
"DON'T. This doesn't have to mean anything."   
"Blue-Bluebell, please." his voice sounded so hollow to her that she couldn't stop the tears that came to her eyes.   
"No. Its fine." she started to back away from him even though he held his hand out with a now pleading look on his face.   
_Sure now he thinks it means something.  
  
__The first look he had didn't lie. This was a mistake.  
  
__Yavanna forgive me but this was mistake.  
  
  
_ {"My darling, why are you fighting this? What happened?" Yavanna whipped around to face Mahal.   
"What is wrong with your dwarf? Why won't he accept that she's his One?" she demanded.  
The smith just held his hands up in a shrug "They're made from stone;sometimes they can be stone headed. He's in denial because he hasn't had any of the signs she's his One."   
"That's ridiculous! He almost orgasmed eating a bloody cookie and he's been having dreams! Irmo has made sure of it! What is he missing?" she shouted the pain and embarrassment she was getting from Bluebell bleeding through.   
"He hasn't gotten a mark yet." he informed her plainly.   
"Oh, is that all? Well I'll give him a mark he can't ignore." she snapped.}  
  
The heartache that was on Bluebell's face made Dwalin sick to his stomach and he hated himself in that instant for being the cause of it.   
She must have taken it as something else because the tears that had threatened now trickled down her cheeks and she whispered "... a mistake."  
   
She ran from him, ran from where they had made love and he made to follow her only to find his feet stuck. He looked down to see that small green tendrils were wrapped around his boots anchoring them to the ground. As he pulled to free himself they seemed to grow stronger and wrap up around his ankles.   
"What in Yavanna's green garden is going on?"   
{"This"}  
Pain blossomed in the middle of his chest and grew until he thought he was on fire. He ripped his shirt off with a howl of pain and dropped to his knees in the dew covered grass.   
The pain rode him for what felt like forever but in actuality wasn't long at all since the moon hadn't even moved when he stood up to find the little plants had released him.   
  
  
Balin leaned so close to his chest that he was beginning to worry that he'd set his chest hair a flame with the candle he held.   
"If you were hoping for a sign I think this is it. Dwalin what did you do?"   
He stared down at the flowers that had bloomed on his sternum and then back at his brother "I think I pissed off a Valar."   
A snort came from the dark corner of the pantry they had hidden in and Thorin stepped out into the glow of the candle "And how,  **Murkhun,** did you do that?"  
He shot that King a dark look before quietly admitting "By doubting who my One was."   
*Thwack!*   
"Bout time you admitted that you block head." Balin scowled at him.   
  
Thorin leaned close to examine the mark "What were you doing when you got this?"   
"Trying to get Bluebell to come back."   
Thorin looked up at him "And why was she running from you... this time?"    
He leveled the same scowl he used on the princes at their Uncle only for Thorin to laugh in his face "That look don't work on me. Try someone else."   
Balin cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow at his younger brother "What happened,  **Nadadith?"** _  
_  
_That's the same look our father used to give when he knew the truth and just wanted to hear it from me._ he thought sourly.   
_He is not going to be happy with me about any of this.  
  
_ And he was right. Neither was happy about the story he told them and they both had left him standing in the pantry alone in the dark with the knowledge that they were incredibly disappointed in how he handled things.   
  
  
  
Bluebell avoided everyone the next day and Beorn actually made it easy. He had a shed full of fabric that he had made from his own sheep and some that he had traded for; he gave her free reign on the material to make whatever she wanted.   
She put all her frustrations and tears into making herself some new breast bands, and underwear, she made her brothers new shirts, and Thorin one as well. Before she knew it she had made a shirt for almost everyone except Dwalin.   
_Should I make him a shirt?  
  
__It's not his fault I behaved so wantonly last night. I don't know what got into me.  
  
__He's my Cariad. Mum always said that when you meet them it becomes impossible to not want to couple with them.  
  
__Doesn't matter now anyway. He deserves someone better than me.  
  
__Someone not damaged, not broken, not wanton and lustful. Someone good, and perfect, and new.  
  
__From the look on his face he knows it too.  
  
__Yavanna forgive me but I won't be telling him this means we're married.  
  
  
_ {Aule couldn't help but laugh at the shocked look on his wife's beautiful face as they heard Bluebell's thoughts.   
"But-but how can she be the stubborn one!" she sputtered.   
"Perhaps she just needs a push too." he offered.   
Her smile was like sunshine and the bushes behind him burst into bloom "I'll send her a sign too!" }  
  
  
Bluebell rubbed her ear thinking there was something crawling on it but the queer tingling stayed as she began stitching the shirts together.   
Nori found her in sewing in the twilight, squinting to get the last stitches done before she lost the light completely.   
"Have you been here all day?"   
She nodded, tongue sticking from the corner of her mouth.   
"Are you hiding?"   
She shot him a look before going back to the shirt in her hand. He knew her too well already as he studied from under his braided brows.   
"From all of us or just one of us?"   
She rolled her eyes at him.   
"Dwalin?"   
She bit her tongue and stuck herself with the needle, giving him a dirty look as she popped the injured digit in her mouth.   
He sat back on his haunches and eyed her speculatively.   
"How long are you going to give me the silent treatment?"   
"I'm not." she denied.   
"You are a lousy liar and you were too. Does this hiding have something to do with the sounds I heard coming from the willow tree last night?"   
She googled at him "How did you hear that?" she hissed.   
He smiled like a cat with the cream at her "I hear everything, **namadith.** What happened, Dwalin a lousy lay? Small hammer?"   
She glared at him so hard she was hoping his hair would catch on fire but no luck.   
"Nothing like that."  
"Damn. Now I owe Bofur 5 bits." he swore. "And Gloin. Bifur too, dammit."  
"Are you done?"   
"Yes, yes. So if it was none of that why have you been hiding all day?"   
She sighed and set the finished shirt down "It was amazing, and beautiful, and not like anything I had ever felt before."   
Nori looked confused "And that's a bad thing?"   
"No," she shook her head "What went bad was afterwards. I looked up and he had this look on his face like he couldn't believe he had just coupled with me and there was pity in his eyes. When I stood it up it changed to something like confusion, pity and his voice was so hollow when he spoke I know he thought it was a mistake. And what's worse is I agree with him. Even if he is my _cariad."  
  
  
_ She looked so sad sitting there surrounded by shirts and then telling him how Dwalin reacted after their tryst made Nori want to go break something. Actually it made him want to tell Dori and watch Dori break Dwalin like a twig.   
Something was niggling at the back of his mind though "Bluebell, what did you just call him?"   
She looked up from where she was playing with a loose thread on her skirt "Hmmm, oh _Cariad_? It's, well do dwarves have soul mates?"   
He was getting a sinking feeling in his stomach "Aye. They're called Ones or  **Khebabmudtu** which means 'Heart Forge'. We only love once and we fall fast."   
She gave him a small smile "That sounds lovely. He's never called me that. But a _Cariad_ is like that. Not all Hobbits find theirs and some choose not to since _Cariads_ can be distracting and make you act improper. My parents were _cariads_ and it's something I always wanted for myself. Now I've found it and he doesn't want me. Not that I can blame him."   
He almost swallowed his tongue is shock at her statement.   
_Mahal fucking wept Dwalin is her One?  Doesn't that mean she's his as well?  
  
__I need to talk to Balin.  
  
__Wait a iron ore mining minute! What does she mean she doesn't blame him!  
_  
"What do you mean you don't blame him? Any dwarf would be damn lucky to have my sister as his One!"   
She stood and patted him on the shoulder like he was a dwarfling again "That is very kind of you,  _Annwyl,_ but I am damaged and used goods. I'm just a little Hobbit that is scarred and broken. He deserves better than me."   
He couldn't believe what he was hearing!   
_Where is this coming from?  
  
__She is the sweetest, bravest, fiercest, beings he had ever met. Anyone would be fortunate to have her for a One._ And he told her as much. She looked at him like as though he was insane before patting his cheek "I love you too."   
  
He wanted to pull his braids out that she wasn't listening to him! She was just humoring him and he knew it.   
"Bluebell please listen to me, hear me, know that I speak the truth to you from my heart. You are amazing, you are the kindest, most selfless, caring, courageous person I've ever met and I'm so thankful to count you as my sister, and as my friend. Dwalin is a fool if he thinks you aren't worthy of being his One."   
She froze where she stood as she absorbed his words and he knew that time she actually 'heard' him.   
"Thank you." she whispered.   
He turned to go as she tidied up "Nori can you take these shirts to Ori and Dori?"   
He nodded as he accepted the pile of cloth; he was already wearing his new shirt proudly.   
"Oh and Nori?"   
"Yeah, **Mizim**?"   
"Please don't tell anyone about me and Dwalin just yet. I need to think."   
"Not even Dori?"   
She gave him an unamused look "Especially not Dori."  
  
  
She had plenty of time to think about it as it went since Thorin announced that they would be leaving Beorn's in 2 days. They all spent the following day gathering supplies which Beorn was more than happy to give them and helped them square it all in the new packs he gave them.   
He gave her complete access to his kitchen and all the supplies there and that's where he found her later in the day.   
  
"Hello, Master Beorn." she chirped from where she was stirring at giant bowl of batter. He sat beside her at the low worktop and watched as she dumped the mixture on to the floured surface and began to knead it.   
"You have something on your ear, Miss Bluebell."   
She didn't look up at him from where she worked "It's probably flour. I almost fell in the bag of it."   
He shook his shaggy head and leaned down to look at it closely "No, its not flour. It's blue and green. It looks like a posy of Forget-me-nots."   
That made the little Hobbit freeze in her work and look up at him with huge green eyes.   
"It looks like what?" she asked softly  
He used a long nail to draw the design in the flour before her "A posy of Forget-Me-Nots. See here's the leaves and all."   
"Oh my. Well looks like Yavanna doesn't care for my stubbornness."   
He laughed, the sound louder than he meant for it to be as Bluebell jumped at the boom.   
"The Giver of Fruits is not always patient with her charges when they don't do what she wants."   
Bluebell scoffed at that "Well she'll just have to get used to it because I don't think things are going to work out how she wants."   
He laughed softer at that "We'll have to wait and see Little Bunny, The Green Mother works in mysterious ways."   
  
  
Beorn had been kind enough to lend them ponies to get to the edge of Mirkwood which cut their travel time in half and she was sad to see the sweet pony head back to it's home while she stood on the edge of a sick forest. The plants didn't sing to her here and the ground beneath her feet felt sick. Once they stepped into the boundaries of Mirkwood her head spun and she felt ill from the fetid air. The dwarves showed and noticed nothing different so they all took turns helping keep her on the path. She enjoyed walking with each of them except Dwalin.   
He kept trying to talk to her about what happened and she had no interest in rehashing all that in the middle of this Valar forsaken forest where she could barely see her hand in front of her bloody face.   
When she told him as much he looked wounded and ceased talking to her all together.   
  
Another thing the damned forest did was make her nightmares worse to where she would rather just stay awake.   
  
  
Dwalin wasn't sure where he was at first until he realized he was in Bluebell's bedroom and it looked different because he  _was_ Bluebell. A fat Hobbit male was dragging her towards the bed cursing her, calling her all sorts of names and telling her how stupid she was and that she was lucky anyone wanted her.  
"You should count your blessings that your grandfather convinced me to marry you." he sneered.   
"Please, Grandfather had to convince me you were worth it." she hissed back.   
  
The male was no prize with his beady, watery mud brown eyes and mop of dirty blond hair.   
Next thing he knew he/Bluebell was being thrown over the foot board at the end of the bed and he felt his skirt being flipped up exposing his backside.   
"You'll learn to listen to me, you conniving little bitch."   
The first crack surprised him but they were alright until about the 8th one that caught the back of the thighs right below the butt cheek. That one made him cry out and the little man let out a malicious giggle before hitting again in almost the exact same spot. Soon the pain all bled together and he was pretty sure he was bleeding.  
"This will teach you your place, you dumb slut."   
It felt like the lash marks were set on fire and he gripped the blankets as he cried out in pain. He felt a fist in his hair as the Hobbit leaned in and whispered "Who is going to want you now with my marks on your flesh, bitch?"   
  
"Dwalin! DWALIN! WAKE UP!"  
  
His eyes snapped open and he sat up in the near pitch darkness. He immediately rolled to the side and vomited.   
" **Nadadith,** what is wrong? Do you need Oin?"   
He grasped Balin's forearm and pulled his brother close "No I'm fine. **Nadad** I dreamed of her again!"   
"And it made you vomit? That's not how it's supposed to go." Balin scowled at him.   
Dwalin leaned their foreheads together and whispered "I dreamed of her, I was HER as she was getting caned! It was awful and that Hobbit should be thankful he's dead or I'd kill him myself slow and painful. To think she went through years of that! No wonder she hasn't spoken to me."   
Balin shook his head "Now you know and you can fix it. Once we get the Mountain back you can take your time and convince her that you're worthy of her."   
  
  
  
Spiders.   
  
Of all the Yavanna forsaken things to come out of this bloody forest it was big ass spiders.   
She slew more than she could count of them and saved all her dwarves from their clutches just for bloody elves to show up to capture them all.   
_Sure show up after I did all the work AND take my dwarves, you pointy eared arseholes._  
  
And then abominably rude elven king that lived in the impossible to navigate palace that did not have nearly enough dark corners for her to sleep in. Thranduile was so impossibly rude to just about anyone that came near him and she really wanted to sneak up and kick him in the shins. But that would have to wait.    
  
Bluebell lost count of the weeks she ran around that blasted palace before she located all dwarves and Thorin took the longest as he was hidden in the deepest, dankest dungeon they had.   
Thank goodness for her little gold ring or none of it would have worked out.   
She thought her brothers were going to crush her into the bars as they hugged her after she took off the ring but their reactions didn't hold a candle to Dwalin's who dropped down to his knees and had tears while thanking Mahal she was alright.   
"We're going to need to talk about this later." she told him motioning to the tears and all.   
"Of course,  **Thutrel."**    
"One of these day's you're going to tell me what you're calling me." she informed him before slipping the ring back on as the next patrol neared the cells.  
  
Finding time to talk though never seemed to work out as she ran herself ragged trying to find a way to free them all AND get out of the palace undetected.   
Wearing the ring was wearing on her but she couldn't take it off for long for fear of being captured. The elves were almost as light on their feet as she was and even though she knew their patrols by heart she didn't trust one to not sneak up on her. Many seemed to enjoy coming to poke fun at the princes who were in separate cells and Kili wasn't handling it well at all. Fili wasn't handling being separated from their Uncle at all well either and some of the crueler elves stopped to laugh at their pain. She doubted they realized that they were essentially laughing at a pair of children and she was hoping if they knew it would change how they behaved.  
  
She found the most rest down by Thorin where it was so cold she couldn't stay long.   
"You don't look at all well, Bluebell."   
She gave him a grim smile "You wouldn't either if you barely slept and were running all over trying to find a way to rescue you lot. I'll be alright. I'm just tired and a bit nauseous. There isn't much in the way of food to nick and I don't want to take away from any of you."   
"You really are one of a kind, Miss Baggins."   
"Thank you, Thorin."   
"I didn't mean that as a compliment. You're being stubborn."   
"I know but I'm taking it as one. Now hush and eat your dinner."   
She saw Thorin smile in the darkness while she rested and tried not to smell what he was eating.  
It really didn't smell that appetizing.    
  
Luck was smiling on her when she learned of the Festival of Stars coming up and she found the trap door into the river below.   
_Now I just have to get the guards drunk.  
  
_ She quickly switched out their watered down wine for the more potent stuff that was heading up to the party and waited. It didn't take long before first one and then the  other drank themselves into a stupor and slumped over completely snookered.  
_Keys. Keys.  
_  
_I know this Diawl has the bleeding keys.  
  
_ She found the ring and it was pinned under him! She slowly wiggled it out stopping every few seconds to shush him back to sleep. Right as she pulled the key ring free the elven captain tipped sideways and slid from the chair boneless to the floor.   
_Why couldn't you do that earlier!  
  
_ She resisted the urge to kick him in irritation and gripped the keys as she raced to the dungeons.  
  
"I've got the keys!" she whisper shouted as she raced along unlocking doors. Kili was so happy to see her he picked her up off her feet and hugged her.   
"There will be time for hugs later! Come on!"   
When she unlocked Dwalin's door he grabbed her and kissed her in heroic fashion that curled her toes.   
"I'm rescuing you, ya great lummox!" as she grabbed his beard and pulled him down for another kiss.   
  
They grabbed Thorin and then she led them down to the cellars.   
  
"Lass, I think you've gotten turned around. This is the cellars we need to go up."   
She put her hands on her hips and glared at Bofur.  
"This was my plan all along, thank you very much."   
She led them over to where there were 13 barrels stacked up.   
"Get in."   
"What? I'm not getting in a barrel!"   
"Miss Bluebell, this one has apples in it!" whined Fili.   
"She wants us to do what?" shouted Oin.   
She shot Thorin a look of "Please get these idiots in the barrels"   
  
"Do what she says!" he barked.  
Dwalin looked at her very skeptical but squeezed his bulk into the barrel all the same.   
"Right. All in?"  
A chorus of "Ayes" and "Yes, Bluebell" came back to her along with Gloin's "I still don't think this is a good idea."   
  
"Alrighty then." she pulled the lever and down they all went with a shout and a huge splash.   
She turned as the trap door shut to a lot of shouting coming from behind her.   
"They're gone! The dwarves are gone!"   
" _Ffyc_."   
She turned and realized she couldn't see the door anymore either.  
"Double _ffyc_."    
She walked back and forth quickly trying to get it to drop but nothing was happening!   
"Son of a-" she finally stepped far enough that it dropped, dumping her into the icy water below.   
She was beyond thankful to see that they had waited for her.  
  
Nori grabbed a hold of her and helped her get a hold of his barrel; there wasn't enough room inside but there were ropes on the outside that helped.   
"Got her! Lets go!"   
  
The trip down the river was something she never wanted to do again. There were elves and orcs and rapids, she went under more times than she cared to admit, and then Kili had gotten shot in the thigh.   
  
She collapsed on the shore line not caring about the gravel that bit into her palms and vomited up what she thought was half the river. Only to look up and have an arrow pointed at her face by a tall Man.  
   
She was so over the day.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Khuzdul  
> Binadjan bin'adad~ Hopeless Bastard (I figure Dori means it in a brotherly way if that makes sense considering Nori gives him such a hard time.)  
> Thutrel~ Star of all stars  
> Mizim~ Jewel  
> Funud~ Braggart  
> Fuzak~ Fuck  
> Mahal zai abra~ Mahal on a cracker
> 
>  
> 
> Welsh (all my translations are from google so I apologize if they are shit)  
> Fy Nghariad~ My love.  
> Annwyl~ Dear, Beloved  
> Diawl~ Bloody bastard. (the devil)  
> Ffyc~ Fuck


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Men, Dragons, Orcs! Oh my!  
> Bluebell has just about had it with no listening to her and is getting ready to start drop kicking everyone even elf lords.  
> Dwalin knows there was something he was supposed to be doing but he can't think with all this gold around.  
> Yavanna's plan might have worked to well and the Valar aren't sure what to do now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know in PJ's version of the Hobbit only Thorin is affected by the gold sickness but in the Rankin Bass cartoon I grew up with and the book its alluded to that all the dwarves suffer from it with just Thorin being the worst. I intend to go that route.
> 
> Forget-me-Nots~ faithfulness, enduring love, true love. (Bluebell's mark)  
> Ferns~ Magic  
> Chrysanthemums~ Fidelity, joy, long life  
> Baby's Breath~ Everlasting Love  
> Red Rose~ Love, Romance, Passion  
> Ivy~ Friendship, Marriage  
> Hollyhock~ Fertility  
> Peach (blossom)~ Your qualities, like your charms are unequaled.
> 
> (I found all these in a book called The Artistic Language of Flowers. I now know how to tell someone to fuck off with plants XD)

The town of Men made Bluebell cringe and the Master of the town makes her want to shrink and hide behind Dori. Her brothers moved to block her from the views of all but the tallest Men and wouldn't budge to let any near her if they could help it.   
Bard the Bowman they had met on the shore was decent and tried to help them but couldn't risk his family either.   
The Master was a greasy, mealy mouthed individual that didn't want to help them until Thorin revealed who he really was, Bluebell could have sworn she saw his eyes flash gold while looking at them and then he had begun to insist that they repay any kindness monetarily after Erebor was reclaimed.   
Thorin drew up to his full height and in that moment she saw the King that the rest saw, and she could understand now why they had followed him across Middle Earth with nothing but a map and a prayer. The Master spotted her in the back of the group and seemed to be transfixed by her. The way he leered at her made her skin crawl and her stomach heave. She felt hot and cold, her head pounded and everything seemed to swim in front of her. It appeared the Master was going to keep them there arguing about repayment until the sun set when Balin joined into the negotiations, and then the vermin had hinted that she could spend the night with him as quicker repayment it was more than she could handle. The company began shouting in outrage which made her head pound more and everything just became too much as she vomited over the edge of the walkway and then collapsed into Dori's arms.   
_Dammit why does this keep happening to me?  
_    
It's surprising how quickly people stop arguing when you get sick and pass out.   
  
  
They were given lodgings and the promise of decent weapons when they departed, thanks to Bluebell. Thorin begrudgingly promised the town a small share of the treasure in return and they were ushered into a small drafty house on the edge of the floating town.   
  
Dori sat beside her while she slept not leaving for anything but quick privy trips, even eating at her bedside. He wiped the sweat from her brow and helped her up half asleep to use the bathroom and then coaxed some honeyed water down her throat before she was sleeping again. Her fever broke the evening of the 3rd day and she seemed to sleep even deeper though her color was better.   
By the 4th day they were beginning to worry when Oin's remedies didn't seem to be working, the healer was beside himself and seriously considering calling for one of the healers of Men when she cracked her eyes open.    
"Bluebell? **Namadith** , can you hear me?" Dori hoovered over her looking anxious.   
"Calm down, **Nadad**. You look like a puffed up hen." she croaked with a small smile.    
"Ah well if you can make fun of me you must be on the mend." he grumped while smiling.   
Ori jumped up on the bed on the other side of her with tears in his warm brown eyes "Bluebell! Thank _Mahal_ you're awake! Don't ever scare me like that again!"   
Nori sat at the foot of the bed and gave her foot a squeeze "If you could not do that again for another 50 years my heart would thank you."   
  
Dwalin sank down onto the top step outside and took a deep shaky breath while running his hands over his bald head.   
"Thank you,  _Mahal_." he whispered in a breath of fog into the night air.   
  
{"Why are they thanking you! It was my herbs that helped beat the cold she caught from saving them." Yavanna pouted.  
"Easy dear, you know they are loyal to me." Aule reminded her.   
They stared down as life moved on for the pair and Yavanna was suddenly puzzled "If she's over the cold why is she still unwell?"  
Varda and Vaire shared a look over her golden head that made them both giggle.}   
  
Oin finally let her up from bed the next day and she felt as weak as a lamb as Ori helped her the stairs to the kitchen where Dori was cooking breakfast.   
"Sweet Yavanna, what is that smell?" she choked out as she clapped a hand over her nose.   
Dori looked up from the little stove "Just eggs. I thought you liked eggs?"   
She dashed out the front door to throw up her tea into the frigid waters before staggering back in to the stares of everyone. Thorin was the only one not staring at her as he was absorbed into the map trying to decide which route would be the fastest and Dwalin looked torn between following what his king was saying and whether he had the right to ask how she was. Gloin looked a little green and pushed his plate away from him as did Bofur. Bombur seized the moment to eat his brother's breakfast with no one noticing.   
  
Oin rushed over to her and tutted her into a chair to begin taking her temperature, pulse and he looked in her eyes.    
"I'm fine, Oin. Honestly I feel better now." she gave him what she hoped was a convincing smile as her stomach gurgled.   
"Hmmmm." he didn't look convinced at all.   
"I swear I feel better." she sniffed and regretted it as the stink of cooking eggs was still hanging thick in the air.   
His grey eyebrows hitched to his hairline at her sniff "Ah! It was mucus that made you ill!"   
"Yes, absolutely that."   
"Dori, get the lass some toast. That'll be easier on her stomach right now."   
She could have kissed the healer right there when she caught Nori's eye. Her middle brother was looking at her oddly and it made her want to squirm in her seat like a naughty fauntling.   
_I haven't done anything!  
  
__Why is he looking at me like I'm in trouble?  
  
_ Ori helped her back up to bed with a cup of tea and her in with the promise to check on her in a few hours once he was done helping Balin.   
The tea soothed her throat that burned from throwing up stomach acid and calmed her churning stomach; sleep wrapped its arms around her.   
  
Dwalin knocked lightly on her door but received no answer so he peeked inside just to make sure she was well. She looked so peaceful sleeping in the huge bed and he eased the door shut only to come face to face with a unhappy looking Nori.   
"She's sleeping."   
That got him a glare from the thief that spoke volumes on what he thought of his intelligence level and he gestured down the stairs.   
"You need to stay away from our sister. You've done enough."  
  
  
  
Bluebell looked up the Mountain and could feel the earth sleeping beneath her feet. They had finished out the week in Lake Town and once her stomach had claimed down they had set out.   
Her heart had cried out at the sight of the barren looking land going up the slope but now it sang in happiness that it was just sleeping, waiting for the time to be awoken and nourished back to health.   
"Here, **Namadith,"** Nori tossed her a small bag.   
"What's this?" she asked as she opened it, blushing fiercely at the content.  
It was full of feminine hygiene things for her moon flows.   
"Oh Thank you!" she smiled at him making him shake his head before turning to follow the others up the rocks.   
_How thoughtful of him!  
  
__Dwarrow males must not be put off by moon bloods.  
  
__Wait when was my last one?  
  
__Rivendell.  
  
__Rivendell... oh my sweet Yavanna what have I done?  
  
_ {Yavanna grabs Mahal by the shoulders and starts jumping up and down her happiness radiating out so much that daisies pop up beneath their feet "Sweet Nectar it worked! It worked!"   
Her grin is contagious to all standing around that even Irmo has a sleepy smile on his face.   
"But she still has to face the Dragon." Vaire reminded her older sister "It's in the weave I cannot change it."   
"She bears my mark, she'll be alright." Yavanna answered smugly.   
"What about the dragon sickness that lies on all that gold?" wondered Nessa peering over Irmo's shoulder as the cauldron revealed the sleeping Wyrm.   
Aule's smile took on a tremulous tick "I'm sure Dwalin is above that and everything will work out."   
Yavanna arched a golden brow at her husband "You are never nervous. What aren't you saying?"   
The great Smith turned as red as his hair "theresachanceitcouldaffectallthedwarvesnotjusttheDurins." he mumbled from behind his beard not meeting her glowing green eyes.   
"WHAT!" she shrieked causing all the flowers nearby to snap shut and sink into the grass.   
Sapling sprung up at his feet and wrapped around his legs rooting him in place while the other Valar sunk back behind the hedges.   
"Well, Smaug's presence corrupted the sickness more than I had thought possible." he answered weakly.  
"This about to get very interesting."observed Tulkas.}  
  
_I'm not pregnant. That's impossible.  
  
_ {"Why won't she accept anything!" Yavanna groused to Mahal.}   
  
  
"Are those stairs?"   
"Excellent eyes, Burglar!" they cheered making their way towards the stone steps leading up to the landing where the door should be.   
Dwalin hung back hoping to get a moment with Bluebell finally. Her brothers had been guarding her night and day since she had awoken in Lake Town and they were doing their damnedest to keep him from talking to her. Balin had begrudgingly agreed to help him get a moment with her before she had to enter the Mountain to what might be her doom.   
Somehow he had recruited Bofur who had pulled Dori off somewhere to do Mahal knows what.   
He shuddered to think of them in a passionate embrace. Balin had Ori furiously writing the account of Bluebell finding the stairs and drawing the entire face of the Mountain! They weren't sure where Nori was but it wasn't glued to Bluebell so Dwalin was going to act fast before he popped up like a star shaped cock block.   
  
She was staring up at Erebor with a mixture of awe and fear on her face as it loomed over them.   
He drew up beside her "Are you alright, Miss Baggins?"   
She shot him a startled look "I'm fine, Master Dwalin though I think we know each other well enough to not be using titles."   
He rubbed a nervous hand across the back of his neck with a self-deprecating smile "Aye, yer right."   
She smoothed her hands down the front of her red coat and her hands seemed to linger at her middle for a second.  
"Is your stomach bothering you?"   
She blushed "I think it's just nerves. We're so close now and soon I'll be entering Erebor alone to see if a Dragon of all things is still alive and by all that's green in Yavanna's garden pray that he doesn't kill me on sight."  
"That is a truly sobering thought, Bluebell."   
Her grin turned smug before it vanished from her face as she leaned back to see where the mountain disappeared into the clouds.   
Her face was thinner now and he was surprised to see the toll the quest was taking on her plainly in the sagging of her clothes. She was still lovely and he wanted nothing more than to take her away from all this.   
"I wish I could go in the Mountain for you." he spoke softly.   
She ducked her head blushing pale pink to the tips of her ears before giving him a shy smile.  
   
  
He helped her up the steps and they were delighted to find a clearing more than large enough for them to camp out on while waiting for Durin's day. Her brothers stayed absent surprisingly and dusk found them snuggled together behind one of the bushes watching the stars.   
She felt so good sitting there with him on the eve of what could be the last time he ever saw her and the thought of it made his heart clench. He thought of never being able to tell her how she made him feel, never touching her again or smelling her sweet scent, of never kissing her again and his heart was in his throat with emotions he couldn't even name.   
"Bluebell, I have something I need to tell ya and I mean every word of it."   
She gazed up at him her face more open than he had ever seen it "Alright, Dwalin."   
He dug in his pocket and pulled out the small green beads of Aventurine that had his family crest carved on them and held his hand out to her. Her gasp went straight to his center as he tried to untie his tongue.   
"I- I wish to court you, Bluebell. You are my One, the other half of my being crafted by the Valar. I know things haven't gone how we'd like them to and I have messed things up from time to time but do know that I love you and I want you. You are amazing, kind, strong, brave, generous and more than I deserve in a **Khebabmudtu."  
** "Dwalin, I don't know. You deserve someone better than me, I am scarred." **  
** "So am I, **Thutrel."  
** "I've been broken and I'm damaged." She protested softly.  
  
  
{"I've had enough of this. They are not moving until they are together!" Yavanna declared waving her hand to cause little shoots to sprout along Bluebells and Dwalin's legs.   
"What, you're going to keep them there till she accepts?" Aule looked skeptical.   
"Precisely. This has gone on long enough and if she's truly expecting they need to stop pussyfooting around!" she wore a pleased expression for her idea.  
"What if Bluebell doesn't accept and thinks she's too damaged for him?" Nessa sang from where she danced with the new flowers that bloomed from Yavanna's happiness.   
"Oh she will. I have seen in her heart that she loves the big oaf she just has hang ups." Varda piped up from where she sat with Manwe in the grass.}  
  
The little spouts went unnoticed at first until they had wrapped around their legs a couple times as Bluebell tried to supply protests that she didn't really believe anymore.   
"You deserve someone fresh and new, that hasn't experienced the things that I have. Someone that hasn't seen the darkness that can live in the hearts of others." she demurred.   
_Why can't I just accept that he wants me?  
  
__Because he does deserve someone better than me, someone without my past.  
  
__Why can't I move my legs?  
  
_ She looked down to see the vines wrapped around her legs and she giggled at seeing them entangling Dwalin's as well.   
"I think Yavanna has had enough of our dancing around each other." she surmised smiling.   
He poked on of the vines with a thick finger and it responded by curling up against his knee. "I think ya might be right."   
She gazed up at him, drinking in how the moon painted him in grays, blacks and highlighted in silver. She really did love the silly dwarf and as he peered down at her with a concerned smile all she wanted was to see those moonshine eyes glow. But that little voice in her head had one last protest that she couldn't ignore.   
"I'm just a Hobbit lass from the shire. How can you possibly want to spend the rest of your life with me? Won't you grow tired of me?"   
"Never," his eyes flashed quicksilver with the strength in his resolve "I would never grow tired of you. Being with you is like breathing, it's the most natural thing I've ever done besides fighting. You are so much more than a simple Hobbit lass to me. You took in 13 dwarves you had never met and fed us amazing food, you left everything behind to help us reclaim our home from a Dragon of all things, you protected Thorin even though he doubted you every step of the way and you saved all our asses from the spiders and the elves. I do not deserve you as my One but I will spend every day proving to Mahal and Yavanna that I do."   
During his impassioned speech the tiny vines grew upwards and sprouted leaves, they swayed in a breeze she didn't feel and she couldn't help but feel it was Yavanna's way of approving of what was happening.   
**  
** She was still holding his hand that held the beads but her hair had swung to hide her face and he wasn't sure what to think until he felt wetness hitting his wrist.   
_She doesn't want me.  
  
_ Grief began to dig it's claws into his heart when a sobbed "Yes." hiccupped from her.   
He froze.   
_Did she say yes? Yes!  
  
_ The little vines released their hold and small blooms sprang open to show Yavanna's happiness.  _  
  
_ {"YES!" cheered the Valar from where they watched in Irmo's garden.   
"Took long enough. Pay up." Ulmo held his hand out to Manwe and the King of the Valar scowling dropped some coins into his hand.   
"Right, now what?" Aule asked looked around rubbing his hands together.   
"Oh, it's not over yet." announced Vaire "There's much more to come."   
"Oh please don't tell me this relationship is going to end already." whined Yavanna.  
"No" Vaire shook her fair head "But there will be some bumps in the road. Should be interesting to see how they handle it. Plus we need to see how the gold-sickness affects Aule's creations."}  
_  
  
  
_ "Yes? You said Yes?" he was struggling to keep his voice level lest he scare her back to her brothers or Balin. He'd never hear the end of it if he scared her away and ruined the moment by being excited.   
She kissed his fingers before turning her tear streaked face up to him "Yes, alright, I accept you suit."   
With his free arm he pulled her against him and kissed her tears away before sealing the deal with a kiss on her sweet lips.   
With a startled yelp the little vines let go and they ended up in the brush with Bluebell laying on his chest laughing breathlessly. She wiggled up and planted a kiss that left him breathless all over again.   
  
"What is this scandalous behavior! Unhand our sister!" Dori's outraged yelling was probably heard all the way back to Lake Town by the time Bluebell got her oldest brother calmed down.   
"Dori! Dori! DAMMIT DORI listen to me!"   
  
Bluebell felt like she was invisible as her brothers shouted at Dwalin for taking liberties with her and the huge warrior just stood there!   
"Try shouting ' **Shazara'** " Thorin whispered in her ear.   
"Thank you."   
She stepped away from him and cleared her throat " **SHAZARA!!"**  
Everyone froze even the dwarves she wasn't yelling at.   
"Brothers please stop berating my  **Khebabmudtu.** I kissed him not the other way around."   
The silence was deafening with all the dwarves gaping at her aside from Balin who was rubbing his forehead and Thorin was looking very pleased with himself for some reason.   
"Your what?" snapped Ori.   
"My One. And he's asked to court me." she smiled at her youngest brother only to fall into a confused scowl as he stormed towards her intended.   
"What are- Yavanna's toes! Ori why did you do that?!" she squealed rushing to Dwalin's side where he laid in the bushes.   
Her kind, timid, shy, bookish brother had tackled the bigger dwarf and landed a punch square in his face, what's more is that Dwalin made no move to block.   
"How could you? Haven't you done enough? Are just doing this so you can deny her later?" he shot at Dwalin.   
Dwalin shrugged off her offer of help and got to his feet, blood dripping freely from his nose and when he spoke he had blood on his teeth. "She's my One, I have proof. I won't deny her for anything. I'll never forgive myself for the pain I caused her in the past."   
"Proof, what proof?"   
Dwalin began undoing buckles and ties, handing her the pieces of his armor as it came away.   
"Is THIS really necessary?" she asked from behind the growing pile of plate and weapons in her arms.   
"YES!" was the resounding answer.   
_Save me from the stubbornness of Dwarves.  
  
_ At last Dwalin pulled his tunic off and dropped on the ground beside him. Bluebell dropped what she was holding as her arms went numb at what was blooming on his sternum.   
Ferns, Chrysanthemums, baby's breath, Holly Hock, Ivy, peach blossoms and a single red rose began blooming on his sternum and trailed down to his abs the vines from the ivy wrapping around his other tattoos like they were always there.   
"Oh my." she breathed.   
  
{"That's right, I wanted no confusion and I did damn good work." mused Yavanna smugly. Aule just smiled and patted her shoulder.}  
  
  
Dawn came too quickly for them but then it seemed like the daylight hours took twice as long to pass.   
Dwalin taught her how to do the courtship braid and how to secure it with the beads he had made her in Lake Town. Dori finally came to grips with the fact his little sister going to marry the Captain of the Guard and the only thing he asked was he not arrest Nori as often to which Nori protested loudly that he'd never been caught "thank you very much".   
Ori was quite proud of himself for standing up for Bluebell and tackling Dwalin. None of them had the heart to tell him that Dwalin felt he deserved it and hadn't even tried to defend himself.   
  
As the boredom grew Fili and Kili grew restless.   
"So Mister Dwalin now that your One is a Hobbit are you going to become soft and a gardener?" asked Kili with an innocent look on his face.   
He scowled at the prince and then went back to sharpening his axes.   
_Nope not going to let him bait me. I'm in a good mood as good as it can be.  
  
__Soon the sun will set and the key hole will appear and Bluebell will be going where I cannot.  
  
__And she might not come back._  
Fili popped up from somewhere "OH I know he'll become a baker! You know since he loves cookies so much! He'll be as big as Bombur in no time!"  
Kili threw his head back and let out a howl of laughter "I can see him now! Dur dur dur where are my eggs, I need flour, Bluebell sweet thing try this."   
He started miming mixing things in a bowl and then (thank Mahal for small favors) did a lewd pelvic thrust behind Bluebell's turned back.  
Dwalin felt his anger rear its head but he determined to not pummel them. He looked for Thorin and their Uncle was staring at them like they had each grown an extra head.  
_What are they playing at?  
  
__Too much restless energy I'm sure.  
  
_ He shook his head and checked to see where his **Thutrel** was. He didn't want her anywhere near these two asses if possible; he spotted her sandwiched between her brothers looking out at the land.   
_Probably talking about wedding things.  
_ That brought a smile back to his lips while he moved on to sharpening his daggers.    
  
The impish smile on Fili's face took on a savage edge when he shared a look of surprise with Kili that the Captain wasn't taking the bait.   
"Now that he has flowers growing on his chest he's probably forgotten how to fight!" crowed Kili.  
"He'll become a simple fat Hobbit that won't be able to smith even a spoon!" laughed Fili.   
"He'll follow Bluebell everywhere 'Let me carry your basket' 'can I brush your weird foot hair' 'let me make cuff for your pointy elf ears'" Kili baited smiling cruelly  
"Look at me I'm Dwalin the gardener now! Have you seen my stones? Why Bluebell what lovely cantaloupes you have! What lovely peaches in your pants, pity they are scarred." sneered Fili.   
The color drained from the lads faces as a soft sob came from behind them and Dwalin looked up to see that Bluebell was standing right behind them. She looked so heartbroken staring at the brothers with her hands over her mouth. Tears began to leak from her wide green eyes.   
"I- I thought we were friends." she whispered "But if that's what you think is funny then I was wrong."    
They both jerked back like she had hit them but nothing prepared them for her marching up and smartly slapping them across the face.   
"My pain is nothing to be laughed at you pathetic excuses for dwarves." and she marched past all of them to sit on the steps a good ways away.   
"Bluebell, wait. I'm sorry!" cried Kili looking torn on if he should follow her to beg forgiveness.   
  
"Eh she'll get over it. She's forgiven Dwalin for worse." Fili sniffed with disdain "She hits like an elf."   
"Well allow me then."   
Dwalin caught the blond prince around the middle and drove him into the dirt before proceeding to punch him in the face. He landed 3 good hits before Thorin and Balin pulled him off the younger dwarf.   
"Dwalin we can't have him incapacitated. Go to Bluebell." Balin shoved him in her direction while Thorin marched a spitting Fili in the other direction.   
  
  
Bluebell didn't know what to think when she finally rejoined the group and Kili walked up to her with his fist held out to her. She looked to Dori at her left and he nodded so she reached a hand out to accept whatever it was he was offering her. She almost dropped it when a small brown braid landed in her hand with the silver bead still attached.  
She raised wide eyes to look at the archer "What.. Why?"   
"I was **binakrag** with my behavior and actions towards you this afternoon. That is not how someone treats their friend and it's not how a Prince of Erebor conducts himself. Please accept my braid as my apology for being such a **hubma rakit**." a tear trickled down his cheek and she felt in her heart that he meant his apology.   
"I accept, Kili, son of Vili. You ever make fun of Dwalin or myself like that again and I'm going to own your stones." he blanched and then smiled at her before seizing her in a bone crushing hug.   
Kili sat down happily in front of her and leaned his head on her knee humming some little tune as they watched the sun creep closer to the horizon.  
Stomping drew their attention towards the bushes to see a bruised Fili come marching up. Dwalin and Kili both began to growl like some kind of guard dog as he drew closer.   
"I Fili, son of Vili, heir apparent of Thorin Oakenshield rightful King Under the Mountain, have behaved disgracefully and seek the forgiveness of Bluebell Baggins, Burglar of the Company of Thorin Oakenshield and One of Dwalin. I behaved like an **binakrag** **bin`adad** and offer my braid as part of my apology." he ground out and she knew he didn't mean it.   
"I accept your braid but I do not accept your apology because I feel you do not mean it."   
Fili shot a panicked look over his shoulder at Thorin and the only response he received was a dark glower.   
He put his arm across his chest with his fist over his heart and knelt "Then I will be in your service until you decide to forgive my transgressions."   
  
_Stand by the gray stone where the Thrush knocks and the last light of the setting sun will shine upon the key hole.  
  
  
_ Bluebell stood at the end of the hall and gripped Balin's warm, dry hand with her sweaty, cold one.   
"I wish I could go with you, lass."   
"I know."   
She took a deep breath and straightened her spine. "Alright."   
She turned swiftly and grabbed the old dwarf in a tight hug that he readily returned.   
"It is an honor to call you family,  **agnâtnana** " he whispered into her curls.   
"I looked forward to having you as my **Undad**. Please take care of Dwalin for me."   
The dim light made a tear track stand out in silver on his whiskered cheek before it disappeared into his beard. "I will,  **kidhuzurâl."  
**  
  
She followed the crumbling steps down until she thought she was going to reach the center of the world, the heat began to grow until sweat was trickling down her spine and she wished she had left her coat with Balin. She wiped her hands off on her coat and tucked them in her pockets, hoping to make them stop feeling like dead fish at the ends of her arms. Her hand jerked back in surprise when it hit something colder than her fingers in her pocket.   
_How did I forget that ring?  
  
__Has it been there all this time?  
  
_ The cold seemed to shoot up her arm and nausea welled up in response so intense that she had to stop and lean against the warm wall.   
_This is nonsense. I need to just go see if Smaug is still living and then nick something and run back to Dwalin.  
  
  
_ The heaps of gold in front of her were awe inspiring even to her, they rolled like great golden hills of this shire with gems for flowers.   
She eyed the coins warily as she carefully stepped one foot down; she wasn't sure if it would be solid or more like mud. The coins were slippery like grease on tile but surprisingly solid under her feet. She took one step, two, and then everything began to shake and her footing was lost as she slid down the slope of coins. She finally stopped by a humongous stone column and she ducked behind to look up as the coins seemed to erupt in a spray of gold and colored stones as a massive head was revealed.   
_I'm going to need a bigger sword.  
  
  
_ Smaug was terrifying and amazing all rolled into one; she was mesmerized by him as much as she wanted to throw up in terror. She stood stock still behind the support and watched as he swung his great to and fro sniffing.   
**"I can smell you thief, I can feel your air. I hear your hearts beating. Come along and gaze upon my glory before I kill you."** he rumbled in that great chest.   
Before she could blink the ring slid on her finger and everything became washed out.    
"Oh Smaug, chiefest and greatest of calamities! I am not a thief I just came to view upon your amazing visage." she spouted, thanking all the etiquette lessons the Baggins' clan insisted upon as a faunt.   
He paused in his searching to preen a little at her praise.   
**"Well you are the most polite thief that's ever woke me."**  
"Oh but you are magnificent! You're as red a ruby and such a stately size! You're the biggest dragon I've ever seen!" she continued professing as she made her way through the shadows to the next pillar, watching to make sure she didn't kick anything or trip.  
_What did he mean hearts? I only have one!  
  
_  
Dwalin was certain that this was his own personal Hell sitting there waiting for some kind of a sign that Bluebell was alive. Dragon be damned he just wanted his One back. The sun slid across the sky as though it was greased with butter but to him it felt like time was holding still and everything was holding it's breath with him.   
  
**  
"So tell me thief, what is your name?"  
** "I am she who walks unseen, I come from under the hill, and under hills and over hills my paths have led." she answered him still moving further down into the room. She was really hoping to find another stair case since his giant haunch was blocking the one she came down on.   
**"So you are female. That explains much."** he surmised.   
She stopped in her descent to be a little indignant "And just what is that supposed to mean!"  
**"You have more than one heartbeat. I think I'm not the only one you've stolen from thief. I've never smelt anything like you before but I have smelled a pregnant female before."  
** She ducked into an alcove and placed her hands on her abdomen and there was a swell that filled her palms.   
"I have no stolen anything from anyone, Thank you!" she shouted, pleased that her voice didn't waver as her body did with the surge of nerves.  
_What have I done?  
  
How could I not have known?   
  
_ There at the bottom of the pile of jewels was a stair case; now if she could make it there without being roasted would be another thing entirely.   
She slid further from Smaug while he mused about why a pregnant female would do something so reckless and the Took side of her reared it's head "I didn't know I was with child until you told me you giant fire breathing lizard!"   
A grating sound started that made her think something was collapsing until she peeked out to see that he was laughing at her!   
**"No one has back talked me in a loooong time."**  
"Well that would explain how you got too big for your britches and took something that didn't belong to you!" she shot off.   
He stopped laughing and zeroed in on where her voice came from "Thror brought me down on his own with his greed. With his sickness and greed how could I ignore an invitation like that?"   
"What sickness?"   
_Why am I trying to have a conversation with something that wants to eat me?  
__  
_ She crouched under an arch that she had no clue it's purpose as Smaug weaved his head back and forth above her still searching.   
**"Ah so that's what that stench is on you. Line of Durin Dwarf, is that who you stole from little Thief?"  
** She clamped her hands over her mouth and nose to muffle her breathing as it seemed his head was slowing in its search pattern.   
**"You know that they are just using you, correct? Once you help them get the Arkenstone back you'll be cast aside, you and your bastard that you carry. The sickness of gold will seize them and twist them until nothing matters but these coins and trinkets. They will starve to death over these things and only you'll be left to mourn their stupidity."  
** Anger bubbled up in her "You're wrong! They would never treat me like that! They will end you and take back their home."   
Smaug reared up  **"I'd like to see them try! My hide is impenetrable, my claws spears, my wings a hurricane! And my breath is death."  
** The wind he generated in such an enclosed space pushed her across the floor and she couldn't believe when a glowing white gem hit her foot at the bottom of the stairs she was trying to get to! She grabbed it and a bejeweled cup and sprinted up the steps.   
She looked at him where he was still reared flaunting his prowess to her; there on his left breast was a bare spot at big as herself.   
_What a fool. There is a spot on your left breast that is as bare as a snail out of it's shell.  
  
_**"Before I kill you for stealing from me I'd still like to know your name thief."**  
"I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly. I was chosen for the lucky number."  
**"Lovely titles but that is not a name, thief. Lucky numbers are not always good luck."** he sneered at her.   
She scowled down at him from where she was perched on the walk way "I am she that drowns her friends and then draws them alive again from the water. I came from the end of a bag but no bag went over me."  
**"You sound like a terrible friend and that isn't credible at all."  
** She put her hands on her hips at that slight "I am a friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am a Barrel rider."   
_Not a bad riddle right there if I do say so myself.  
  
_**"I knew it! You came from those tub thumping Lake Men!"** he roared stomping closer to where she was.   
She darted towards where the secret tunnel was but soon discovered the walkway had been destroyed.  
**"Show yourself thief! I can smell the gold on you!"  
**_Gold? What gold? The cup I took was silver!  
  
__Wait.  
  
__The ring is gold.  
  
_**"Reveal yourself or I will roast you where you stand."** he thundered stomping closer to where she stood shaking.   
She watched as his jaws opened and she could see the glow building in his chest.   
"Here! Take it!" she shrieked whipping the ring off her finger and throwing it at him.   
  
If she hadn't been there to see it she would have called anyone who told her the story that they were full of bullshit.   
The ring went sailing towards Smaug winking in the dim light, and she shut her eyes sure that this was it.   
**"Hrk!"  
** She cracked an eye to watch as Smaug snapped his mouth shut and began to claw at his throat as the glow began to shine through his nostrils and around the scales on his throat. With another strangled noise there was a great *CRACK* and she was splattered with blood and bits of dragon.   
When she cleared her eyes and looked... His head was GONE! The leaking stump of his neck swayed before crashing to the ground with enough force to make the mountain shake.   
She sank down where she stood and cupped her hands over the bump under her shirt " _Ffyc_ , Yavanna blessed _FFYC_! I can't believe that just happened!"   
  
{"Well that was disgusting but save Olorin the trouble of worrying about the One ring anymore." Aule shrugged.   
"I guess it just took a dragon to convince her she was pregnant." grinned Yavanna.   
"So now everything is good?" asked Nessa peeking around Ulmo.   
"No there are still trials awaiting them."   
"Shoot. I was hoping we could go dancing." pouted Nessa.}  
  
Thorin swayed with his pacing as the Mountain shook and felt his body break out in a cold sweat as he looked skyward, the Mountain had shook like that when Smaug had first arrived. When minutes passed and nothing happened he shared a wide eyed look of horror with Dwalin before he watched his best friend grab his axes and run down the tunnel.   
The sight that they beheld there in the treasury was one the he never thought to see again.   
The gold was piled higher than he remembered and oh how it shone in the muted light.   
"Bluebell!" Dwalin whisper shouted across the space. All that answered him was the echo  _"Bluebell."  
  
_ Dwalin spun his axes as he made his way slowly down the stairs looking everywhere for movement and finding none large or Hobbit size small. He went to step down and froze.  
There across the bottom step was Smaug's tail.   
Thorin ran into his back with a "UFF" and the tail didn't twitch.   
Dwalin held his breath as he waited, and waited, and scowled at the offending appendage.   
"It's not moving. What do I do?" he whispered back at Thorin.   
"Have you ever seen so much gold? Hgggh I'm sorry, what?" Thorin grunted as Dwalin's elbow caught him in the gut.   
"The bloody tail isn't moving! What do I do?"   
"Poke it, Mister Dwalin!" came Kili's excited voice from behind Thorin.   
"I thought I told you to stay with Fili?" groused Thorin.   
"I'm right here, Uncle Thorin!" chimed the other Prince.   
  
Dwalin left the family to their bickering and used Grasper to poke the huge tail.   
Nothing.   
He frowned and poked it harder.   
Still nothing.  
"Anything happening? I can't see!" shouted Kili pushing forward into Thorin who fell into Dwalin who dropped his ax and cut off the end of the tail.   
"SHIT!"   
They all dove off the stairs and covered their heads.  
"What are you lot doing?" came a very familiar female voice.   
"Bluebell, get down! Kili just made Dwalin just cut the end of Smaug's tail off!" hissed Fili from his crouch on the steps.   
"I said I was sorry!" whined Kili from the far side of the gold heap.   
  
She stood there next to the dragon's tail and started laughing "He's not going to care about that when his head has exploded!"   
Dwalin looked up at her standing there and felt his heart skip a beat. She was covered in so much blood that her hair was red instead of honey colored.   
He tripped, stumbled and slid to her, running his hands all over her checking for any injuries.   
"Dwalin, stop. Dwalin, STOP! I'm fine, none of this blood is mine. It's all Smaug's from where I was standing in front of him as his head exploded like one of Gandalf's fireworks."   
The strength left his knees at the thought of her being so close to the Giant Wyrm and he held her against him until his heart resumed beating like normal. He heard humming and realized it was Bluebell humming while she stroked his head and shoulders.   
He looked up into her loving gaze "We need to talk later when we're alone." she smiled.   
  
  
Later never came.   
Bluebell watched as one by one her dwarves were taken by the gold-sickness; they became obsessed with sorting and looking for a crown, and then the Arkenstone, and armor. She helped Bofur and Bifur locate the kitchens and then some bedrooms that hadn't been destroyed.   
She watched as the supplies began to dwindle and no one seemed to care.   
"What does it matter when we have this much gold?" asked Thorin with Dwalin and the Prince's nodding in agreement behind him.   
"But you can't eat or drink gold." she stated.   
"You're a Hobbit. You only care about food and drink." Dwalin responded and she felt her heart crack.   
No one seemed to sleep anymore and the way they watched her made her uneasy. She took to standing up on the battlements watching the ravens return.   
She pulled her shirt up and looked down at her growing midsection and rubbed it.   
"Don't worry little one. Soon Gandalf will be here and he'll know how to fix everything... Hopefully."   
"Burglar, what do you have?"   
Her heart cracked a little more to hear Dwalin address her so as she tucked her shirt in and turned to face him.   
His eyes were no longer quicksilver but the color of the winter skies outside and she could have sworn when he turned his head there was a sheen of gold light over them.   
"Nothing. I tore my shirt."   
He smirked stepping close to her as she shivered in the breeze "Worry not  **Ghivashel,** I will buy you a hundred shirts and skirts of every color to cover your adorable bottom. I want to drape you in gold and jewels."   
He kissed her and it was then that she knew 'her Dwalin' was gone. The kiss was cold and harsh, demanding and almost bruising.   
He left her standing there shaking, shaken and saddened that it seemed like that damn dragon was right. 

  
  
{"How could you have not told me this dragon sickness was so serious!" Yavanna started swatting Mahal on the shoulder.   
"Ow, ow, OW quit it! I didn't realize it had twisted this much in Smaug's presence." he hollered trying to dodge her hits but she fought dirty and got the plants to join in.   
"My child is suffering because you forgot about this! Is there any way to cure it?" she demanded taping her barefoot in the grass.   
"Maybe destroy the Arkenstone. I never figured out where it came from. Smaug coming is what broke them out of it before. Maybe something big like that?"   
"Well I'm fresh out of dragons so anything else?" she snapped tears welling up at Bluebell's pain.   
"Olorin will be there soon. He will fix it all, don't worry too much just yet Sister." Manwe informed them circling the cauldron to hug Yavanna.}  
  
  
It was the end of the 2nd week that she saw the armies approaching and ran to get Thorin. Her heart sank as she realized Gandalf was not with them and that there would soon be an army of Men and Elves camped on their door step.   
Thorin cocked it up fabulously and she had the strong desire to kick him in the shins.   
"But Thorin we promised them a share and to help rebuild Dale."   
"We have all the gold in the world what do we need to rebuild Dale for? They will get none of my gold." he scoffed as he left the ramparts.   
"Please," she beseeched the others as they filed past her "We won't survive without food."   
"We have all we need in the treasury" Gloin informed her before walking away laughing.   
"We have plenty of gold. It'll be alright, lass. You'll see." Bofur tried to reassure her as he followed Gloin.   
"You worry too much about food, Miss Bluebell." Kili added shaking his head.   
"You should worry about something else, like the fact you're getting fat." Fili advised her, walking away as well.   
_I'm not fat I'm pregnant you Diawl_ she wanted to scream but she doubted they cared and that was not how she wanted to tell Dwalin.   
  
That evening she tried one more time to get Thorin or Dwalin to listen to her.   
"I swear to you on my parent's graves that we will not survive the winter without food! Please Thorin you have to listen to me!"   
"He is King under the Mountain to you, halfling." Dwalin informed her from his post next to the throne where Thorin lounged playing with a large ruby.   
"You know nothing of running a kingdom, halfling. We have more than enough gold. We will be fine."  
Being called "halfling" felt they had punched her and as she searched their faces, she realized they really didn't care.   
"This is madness!" she screamed at them "You are dooming all of us by your actions."   
"No one said you had to stay." Dwalin stated bluntly, oblivious to the tears that streamed down her face as her heart broke in two.   
  
Dwalin watched as the little thing begged and pleaded for them to listen to her. He just couldn't find it in himself to care what she thought when he had to go count out his share of the treasure still. She was a fussy little thing standing there screaming at them in her thread bare pants and shirt. He felt deep down that she was important to him but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.   
She finally gave up her yelling at them and her shoulders drooped in defeat with water on her face.   
"Queer little thing isn't she?" asked Thorin.   
"Yes your majesty. I can't quite remember why she's even here. Can you?'  
"No I cannot. Shall we go count more of our gold?"   
"Yes sir."   
  
  
She watched at the rope uncoiled to the ground. Thorin had insisted the gate be blocked with debris to keep anyone from sneaking in during the night to steal his gold.   
"What are you doing?"   
She spun to see Bofur standing behind her looking worried.   
"I can't stay here." she told him her hands drifting to her belly.  
His eyes widened in understanding "Oooh lass, are you expecting?"   
She really didn't want Bofur to be the first to know but she couldn't lie to the sweetest dwarf she'd ever met either so she nodded. His eyes suddenly looked clearer as they drifted from her belly to the rope she had tied off.  
"Does the Da know?"   
She shook her head and tears sprang up again.   
_Damn hormones._  
The look he gave her wasn't one of disapproval or disappointment but one of understanding. "You're right. It's not safe for you here. I know something isn't right but I can't figure it out. I'm missing huge chunks of time, and Dwalin and Thorin are acting so odd."  
"I know. I'm hoping I'll find Gandalf in one of the camps. I'll be back by sunrise."   
He nodded making his floppy hat bob "I'll wait here to pull you up. I wish you'd just get as far from here as you could. It would be safer for you and the babe."  
She smiled sadly "I can't. He's my Cariad."   
And with that she tied the rope around her hips and climbed down.   
  
  
It was farther to the camp of Elves than she had thought but she was there by midnight and demanded to see Thranduil to a couple of very surprised captains.   
  
The meeting went as well as could be expected and only improved when Bard was brought in and the cherry on top of the cupcake was when a dirty Gandalf strode in calling them all idiots for arguing because there was a army of Orcs coming.   
She shut them all up when she pulled out the Arkenstone and placed it on the table.   
"Everyone I love will die one way or the other between hunger and the orcs. I claimed this as my 14th share of the treasure and I'm giving it to you lot as a bargaining chip."   
Thranduil leveled cool blue eyes at her "That's not the only thing you took."   
She refused to look away from his smug face and her face burned "Yes I am pregnant. But that's not the important thing right now. Will you accept this or not you poncy tree shagger?"   
Bard snorted wine through his nose and shot it across the table while Gandalf rolled his eyes and muttered something that sounded like "only a fool of a Took."   
Thranduil stunned them all when his face split into a sparkling smile and he picked up the stone. "I accept."   
  
Gandalf ushered her out of the tent scolding her every step of the way.   
"What were you thinking insulting him like that?"   
She glared up at him "No one stands up to him anymore so I did. I spent 2 months in his palace. They all do what he wants and none argue even when he's acting like a petulant child."   
She could tell he was trying to not smile "And running around here in the middle of the night while pregnant?"   
"I was thinking exactly what I said. They're all going to die in there. I thought it would be from hunger but now there is the very real chance it'll be from Orcs. I love them all even though right now I want to hit each one with my frying pan and I might do just that when this is all over. But the fact remains I can't leave them to die."   
"You are far better than I, my dear. Now come along I want you to stay in the Elven healers tent."   
She stopped "I can't, I have to go back. They'll know something is amiss if I don't return. It'll be alright, Gandalf." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Valar...  
> Mahal (Aule)~ The Smith that made the Dwarves  
> Yavanna~ Fruit Giver. Creator of the Hobbits.  
> Irmo~ Lord and Master of Dreams  
> Varda~ Star-Queen. Queen of the Valar.  
> Nessa~ The Dancer  
> Tulkas~ The Wrestler. Last to come to Arda.
> 
> Khuzdul  
> Bin`adad~ Bastard  
> Binakrag~ honor-less  
> Thutrel~ Star of stars  
> Agnatnana~ Sister in law  
> Undad~ Greater Brother (I thought that fit Balin the best)  
> Kidhuzural~ Golden One.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bargaining with the Arkenstone is here and nothing goes right.  
> The battle happens and Bluebell just can't take Gandalf's advice when Dwalin is in danger.  
> Dain fun and all kinds of revelations ensue in the healing tents and Dwalin just has to put his foot in it one more time no matter what Balin says. 
> 
> **Trigger warning for some forced intimacy but not rape.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Bofur to much to imagine him staying behind after he watched them mistreat Bluebell so I had him follow her to protect her and the baby.
> 
> I figure Hobbits are pregnant for about 7-8 months depending on diet, family, etc. 
> 
> Bold is Khuzdul that I couldn't find the right words for lol
> 
> Oh the angst got deep with this one! I tried to pull it back but it just poured out like this.

Bluebell could have sworn the distance back to Erebor had doubled as she felt exhaustion pulling at her limbs. Bofur was there just like he had promised and he hauled her up with no issues.   
The sky was barely pink as she dropped down into a deep sleep and her dreams were odd but comforting. For the first time in weeks she had a dream of Dwalin and while it wasn't just one instance she instead saw moments that spread through out his life from growing up with Balin while all the dwarves were traveling, of him being barely battle ready at Moria. She saw the mourning that followed for his father, Thorin's father and grandfather and his best friend Frerin who was Thorin's younger brother, she saw him grow into the mountain of dwarf he became, she saw how he saw her the first time they met and their first kiss.   
  
She awoke to Dwalin on top of her and for a moment she forgot that he wasn't himself anymore but the kisses weren't right and his touch was rough as he tried to push her shirt up.   
" _Cariad_ , wait not here." she whispered.  
But he didn't stop instead his hands went to her waist band.   
"Dwalin, I said stop." she insisted louder beginning to feel the ice of panic in her veins.   
He nibbled at her neck and she started pushing on his shoulders not like she could move him but she couldn't just lay there!   
"Dwalin STOP IT!" she cried panic setting in as she tried to shove him off. She might as well been a kitten beating at him with all the notice he paid to her.   
"She said stop,  **hubma rakit!"** Bofur shouted knocking Dwalin off of her.  
He pulled her to him and swung her behind him, blocking her with his body as he squared off facing the tattooed warrior.   
Dwalin staggered to his feet and she saw that he looked even worse than before. His eyes held a yellow haze and had a strange light to them, his beard was matted and none of his hair looked like it had seen in a comb in many days.   
"She's mine! My bead is in her hair! She is m-" he raved stepping towards them reaching for her; Bofur popped him in the nose and Dwalin dropped like a ton of stone.   
"That'll shut him up for a minute. Bluebell are you alright? What about the baby?" He ran his warm brown eyes over her checking for some injury.  
She ran her hands over hair and down her body settling on her bump where she felt a flutter. "I-we're alright. I can't believe he did that! This has to end! What am I going to do?"   
  
  
{"What in the little green apples, was that?" Yavanna demanded pointing at the cauldron.   
Aule looked around for a way to escape his wife's wrath but the bushes all shifted blocking his way.   
"The madness doesn't stay to just gold, it can be transferred to whatever they're passionate about. Before Smaug it was just a devotion to their Craft but he twisted it to what it is now. Thorin's grandfather had it as well but not to this extreme."   
"Oh well if that's all." scoffed Ulmo.   
"This just keeps getting better and better! What next a war?" shouted Yavanna.   
"Well you say that..." Vaire tapped her nose.  
"Oh you have got to be kidding." Yavanna pressed her fingers to her forehead.}  
  
  
Bluebell wanted to cry, scream and go back to bed but she was more pissed off than anything. She drew her foot back to kick him but decided to wait till he was conscious.  
_When he wakes up he is going to meet the business end of my frying pan._    
  
She grabbed Bofur and hugged him "I cannot thank you enough for saving me."   
He blushed a deep red "It was nothing, lass. I couldn't let my One's sister be harmed, now could I? How about when this is all over you can make me a cake like that one in Bag End?"  
She felt happiness gain a foot hold in her heart "Dori's your One?"   
The toy maker blushed all the way to his ears as he rubbed the back of his neck "Aye though I don't think he knows it.   
"Oh I'll make sure he knows it when this is all over." she winked at him   
"Ya don't need to do that for me."  
"But I want to!" she protested "Plus once this is all over I will make you a dinner just like the one at Bag End."  
He smiled "Deal!"   
  
  
Bard and Thranduil arrived a little past midmorning with Gandalf beside them. Thorin strutted like a peacock on the ramparts, wearing all gold armor that glittered in the morning sun and did his best to insult everything about the Men and Elves.   
"I've come to bargain with this." and Bard held up the Arkenstone.   
"Where did you get that?" Thorin breathed.   
"I gave it to them." she stepped forward.   
"You betrayed us?" the pain on their faces made her feel sick.   
"I claimed it as my 14th share of the treasure and I gave it to the Men of Dale. Bard is a descendant of Girion and will lead them well."  
   
She didn't have time to blink before Thorin had her by the throat and was lifting her up to look him in the eye.   
"So I have been betrayed by a Shire rat." he hissed.   
She tried to grip his wrist but couldn't as her fingernails slid across the polished metal.  
"Thorin... please! I did it to save you!" she gasped.   
"THORIN put her down!" Bofur shouted from where he was blocked by Bifur with his boar spear.   
"Why did I ever trust you? You sneaky, thieving, lying wretch. You don't belong here!" he shouted as she felt his fingers tighten and his rings bit into her neck.   
"P-please" she wheezed trying to wrap her hands around his forearm to lift herself. Her lungs were beginning to burn and  her throat felt impossibly tight, like she was trying to breath threw a reed.    
"Drop her, Uncle!" yelled Kili and Fili, their eyes glittering strangly.   
"Show them what we do to thieves!" bellowed Gloin next to a furiously nodding Oin.   
"D-Dwalin- _Cariad_ , Help me." she whispered tears forming in her eyes as he looked coldly back at her. She reached out a shaking hand towards him and he actually stepped back!   
"Throw her from the wall, Thorin." his deep voice seemed to vibrate all the way to her bones.  
  
Her blood froze and she tried to get purchase on something, anything with her toes but they met nothing but open air. She could see the rocks below from the corner of her eye and looked skyward sending a silent prayer to Yavanna to protect her baby.  
  
  
{"DO SOMETHING!" Yavanna screamed at her siblings, gripping the cauldron so tight she left her hand prints crimped into the rim. Nessa covered her eyes and peeked from between her fingers. Ulmo was trying to see if he could get the clouds that low with so much sunshine. Mahal just stood there looking helpless as Manwe whispered into the wind.}  
  
"I say if you are done with my burglar I'd like her returned to me instead of damaged" boomed Gandalf's voice as wind seemed to wrap around her.   
"So be it." and Thorin dropped her on the stone at his feet. Her hands immediately went to her belly where the baby was fluttering like a humming bird as she sucked in great gulps of air.   
She looked up to see Dwalin staring at her and she thought she saw something flash in his eyes but it was gone in an instant.  
"Leave."   
She nodded and struggled to her feet one hand on her abdomen and the other bracing herself on the wall.   
"Halfling you are hereby banished from the Kingdom of Erebor punishable on death if you try to return. Now leave my sight before I change my mind." Thorin declared to the cheers of the others.   
"Let me go with her!" cried Bofur still trying to push past his cousin.   
Hurt flashed across Dwalin's face before he sneered "I see that I was easily replaced."   
Just when she thought her heart couldn't hurt anymore he managed to dig the blade a little deeper.   
"Never." she whispered.   
  
She wasn't sure how she made it down the rope with numb hands and shaking legs but she did it. She almost ran to Gandalf before she collapsed against his robes sobbing and shaking uncontrollably. Thranduil picked her up gently and carried her swiftly to the tents in his camp.  
  
{"That's it I'm going to end them all and have the Ents break the mountain down. We don't need dwarves." Yavanna announced looking almost savage. Ulmo looked like he was seriously the merits of her plan.   
"I could raise River Running and flood the mines." he offered.   
They looked at Manwe to see what his thoughts were.   
"Wait, please. They might be able to fix things." Mahal pleaded with his wife and brothers.  
Yavanna crossed her arms in a pout across her chest "Fine, darling but if they hurt my Hobbit again I will punish them either in this life or the next."}   
   
   
"Wait! Wait for me!"    
Gandalf turned ready to strike down whoever was yelling only to see that it was Bofur.   
"Bofur, son Belur what are you doing down here?"  
The dwarf stopped jogging, fixed his ridiculous hat before stating "My mam would never forgive me if I left a pregnant woman in need, Tharkun. And my mam scares me more than Thorin. I can't and I won't abandon Bluebell now. I'll never forgive myself for failing to protect her up there."  
It wasn't often that things surprised him but Gandalf felt his eyebrows rising as he looked at the dwarf.   
"Very well, Master Bofur. This way."   
He led the dwarf through the camp of Men and on to the camp of Elves. Thranduil had taken the little Hobbit to his personal tent and they found him standing in the middle of it still holding the sobbing female while looking very uncomfortable.   
Relief showed plainly in his icy blue eyes as Gandalf entered the dwelling "Ah Mithrander I do not know what to do. She will not stop crying. I am unused to tears of any kind and find myself quite lost in how to handle this."   
"Ah finally something you leaf eater aren't perfect at!" chimed a cheery voice from behind the wizard.   
Bofur stepped around him and strolled up to Thranduil "Give her to me. I know how to handle this."   
The elf king arched a blond questioning eyebrow at Gandalf and at the Istari's nod; he knelt and put the little being in the dwarf's arms.   
  
He was surprised to see the hatted dwarf's features soften as he rubbed the crying hobbit's back and murmured that he had her. With a huge sob she threw her arms around his neck and cried harder all the time saying something so garbled and high pitched even his superior hearing couldn't decipher it.   
"You can understand her?"   
The ridiculous hat bobbed with his nod "Oh aye. My brother has 4 daughters."   
"That is impressive."   
The dwarf smiled but it didn't reach his eyes "My nieces always run to me when they are upset about something. I have many years of experience dealing with crying females."   
  
  
{"Now him I like. I won't punish him." Yavanna stated looking satisfied watching Bofur comfort her Hobbit.   
"Make sure nothing happens to him." she pointed at her husband where Mahal was sulking behind a bush.}  
  
  
  
  
The orcs were there sooner than expected and the battle raged around them as Bofur and Gandalf tried to keep Bluebell safe. She insisted she was fine even though her neck was decorated in bruises and cuts in the shape of Thorin's fingers and she had cried for an hour in the elf king's tent.  
They helped move the women and children to safer place in Dale and then they watched the battle from one of the ruins.   
They saw Dain arrive astride his ram and though they were tracking the Iron Hills dwarves they kept an eye on the Gate of Erebor waiting for something, anything to happen.   
  
  
Inside Erebor the dwarves could hear the battle raging and just continued counting their coins.  
Kili was the first to "wake up"  from the gold-sickness stupor. He felt as though he was surfacing after being under water for a really long time. Everything suddenly seemed louder, brighter, better and worse at the same time as his memories came back to him in bits and pieces. The sounds of the battle drew him to look through a crack in the rocks blocking the gates. The screams of Men, Elves and Dwarves dying rang out as he watched the Orcs swarm everything like locusts.  
Horrified he looked around at the others and took a breath only to grimace as he realized he smelled worse than a troll's loin cloth.  
_Ugh when was the last time I bathed?  
  
__Never mind that we have a battle to fight!  
  
I'll take a bath later.  
_    
"What is going on? Why are we just sitting here letting other fight our battle?" he shouted at them turning to face each of them.   
"It's not our fight. We're safe in here, laddie." Balin told him going back to playing with his stack of coins.   
"This is madness! We're dwarves! We never sit out a battle!" he cried and received only blank stares back even from Gloin.  
   
He spotted Dwalin leaning against a pillar with an odd look on his face as he stared at his knuckle dusters "Mister Dwalin! You taught me that we never hide from a fight! Why are we doing that now?"   
Dwalin looked at him confused "I feel like I'm missing something."   
Kili threw his hands up in frustration until he saw where Bombur and Bifur were.   
"You! Are you two really alright letting your brother and cousin fight your battle out there?"   
They shook their heads and Bombur spoke up "But we don't want to enrage Thorin. We were worried he'd throw Bofur from the wall as well if we let him interfere. We follow the King but now I don't know what we should do. I miss Bofur and Bluebell though."   
" **Kun.** " grunted Bifur looking down at his feet.  
Ice water ran down his spine as he remembered the Burglar and what he had shouted as Thorin dangled her from the ramparts.   
_Oh sweet Mahal Bluebell.  
  
_ {"Sure now they call to you." Yavanna groused scowling at the young prince's reflection in the cauldron as he tried to rally the other.   
"Cut him some slack, dear, he's very young for a dwarf. Barely of age, honestly." Mahal reminded her with a small smile.} _  
  
  
What did we do to Bluebell?   
  
She will never forgive us.   
  
  
_ He went back to Dwalin "You're missing your One!"   
No recognition showed on the big dwarf's face.   
Kili started gesturing in the form of a smaller being with feminine curves "Bluebell Baggins! Little Hobbit lass about ye high, saved our asses more than we want to admit. She.Is. Your. One. Agreed to marry you right out there on the door step."   
It was like a switch flipped and Dwalin went through a gamut of emotions before grabbing his head. " Argh! Where is she?"   
"She's with Gandalf out there." he pointed towards where they could hear the battle rage.   
Horror made all the color leave Dwalin's face before he started going around slapping the others.   
Apparently a slap from Dwalin could cure many things.   
_Why didn't I think of slapping them?  
  
__Because I'm not suicidal. Some of them would end me if I slapped them.  
_  
"Where is Thorin?" growled Dwalin.  
"I'm here, **Murkhun " **  
  
Kili couldn't the skeptical look he had as Thorin strode forward to knock their foreheads together.  
"Are you, YOU?"   
Thorin smiled and his blue eyes glistened "As much me as I can be. Me enough to say that you are right that you were not raised to stand by while others fought your battles for you. Me enough to say that we need to go join the fray."   
"YES!"   
  
  
  
{"I knew they could beat it!" cheered Mahal looking at his siblings thinking they would join him in cheering but his wife was in tears and the others were just scowling.   
"Maybe I can flood part of Erebor for their actions against her." plotted Ulmo.   
"They may have beat but what damage have they caused because of it?" asked Varda peering into the cauldron.  
"Will Bluebell forgive them? Will she forgive Dwalin?" Nessa asked turning sad eyes up at Yavanna.  
"I really don't know. Hobbits are very forgiving by nature but I don't know if they can fix this." she answered truthfully with sad eyes. Her sadness leaked into the flowers and they all drooped until their petals touched the grass. }  
  
  
  
They watched the gate explode as the horn sounded and they saw the small formation of dwarrow burst out and into the battle with a roar so loud that the orcs nearby stopped what they were doing to look.   
"There's me brother and cousin!" Bofur pointed out excitedly.   
Bluebell smiled at him but she couldn't pull her eyes from the small figure that was swinging dual axes and cutting through any that got near Thorin or the boys.   
She heard the Black Speech shouts and looked to see the Pale Orc standing on Ravenhill directing the battle.   
She grabbed Gandalf's sleeve and pointed out the little figures climbing the rock face on battle rams "They're going to kill Azog! We need to help them!"   
"Bluebell, you can't go alone into battle in your condition."   
She bared her teeth in a savage smile "That's why I'm not going alone. You're both going with me."   
  
  
They skirted the battle with almost no notice thanks to just the natural Hobbit skill of moving silently and quickly. Bofur held onto her hand and it seemed like her 'magic' covered him as well. The climb up Ravenhill wasn't as easy and Bofur piggy  backed her a couple times to go faster.   
  
They found a bleeding but living Kili near the tower, laying there like a broken toy tossed by a giant faunt and Gandalf agreed to rush him to the healers as long Bluebell stayed near Bofur.   
"It can't hurt to look around a little bit, right?"   
Bofur rolled his eyes and gripped his mattock tighter as he followed her around the base of the tower to see what the noises were that bounced off the rock.  
   
Shrieking from overhead made them look up in shock at the giant bats swooping past and over them. Arrows sprouted from one headed in their direction and it careened into the tower making it sway dangerously.   
"BLUEBELL!"   
Before she could even think to move her fuzzy feet she was swept away to from tumbling blocks and she turned to see them rain down where she had just been.   
"Bofur!"   
"At ease Mistress Hobbit I'm sure your dwarf is safe." She looked up to see that she had been saved by a blond elf with very familiar blue eyes.   
"Are you related to Thranduil?"   
That earned her a very exaggerated eye roll and the answer "He's my Father."   
  
"Here I am!" cried Bofur popping up from the edge of the collapse.   
He trotted over to them and eyed the elf suspiciously "My thanks for saving her, Master Elf."   
"Legolas." he bowed.   
"What are you doing up here?" she asked looking around.   
"I followed Erebor's King. He always seems to be where there are plenty of Orcs."   
Now it was her turn to roll her eyes "Yeah he's good at finding trouble."  
"Do you know where he and the Captain of the Guard are?" Bofur asked searching the skies around them for more bats.    
  
Legolas lead them to the last place he had seen them but all that was there was a bunch of dead orcs. A cracking sound seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere as they searched the ruins.   
Groaning drew their attention from the iced over river and Bofur shifted some chunks of debris to reveal Fili with a very obviously broken leg.   
"Oh sweet peas! Fili, are you alright? How are we going to move him?" she looked at the other males pleading.   
Bofur sighed "I'll take him down. You there, Lego-whatever do not let her out of your sight."   
She stomped her foot at him "I'm pregnant not handicapped, Bofur."   
"I will not let any harm come to her, Master Bofur." Legolas promised as he helped Bofur get Fili situated in his arms and still maintain his hold on his weapon.   
  
The noise slowly drew them towards the frozen river where Legolas finished off any stragglers before Bluebell could even panic.   
  
Another pale Orc loomed up from the rocks and Legolas did not hesitate to engage him; Drawing him up and away from his charge.   
  
Bluebell found Thorin standing in the middle of the frozen river as Azog swung his mace at him cracking the ice all around them. She watched as they moved as though doing some odd type of dance and her heart was in her throat as she watched Thorin stumbled in exhaustion. The Pale Orc drew his bladed arm back to deliver a death blow to the King under the Mountain when Bluebell saw her chance. She darted forward and stabbed Azog in the ass cheek breaking his guard for Thorin to smoothly decapitate him with Orchrist.   
  
{"Yes that's how you do it! Stab him in the ass!" cheered Yavanna bouncing and clapping her hands at the demise of one of Melkor's spawn. The flowers at her feet bounced with her and seemed to grow in size.}  
  
  
Thorin dropped to one knee panting on the ice and Bluebell raced to him "Thorin! Are you alright?"   
"Bluebell? Mahal I must of hit my head harder than I thought! Why would you be in the middle of this battle?" he shook his dark head before squinting at her again.   
"I came to find my dwarves."   
Thorin collapsed the rest of the way to the ice, rolling onto his back and looked up at her "Your dwarves? You don't hate us?"   
She sniffed back tears as she smoothed his hair back from his face and checked him for injuries "I might not be very happy with most of you right now but no I don't hate you. I know you were all sick."   
"You truly are an amazing creature. If more people were like you the world would be a kinder place." he breathed shutting his eyes.   
"NO! Thorin Oakenshield don't you dare die on me!" she slapped his cheek until he cracked an eye open at her.  
"At ease, Bluebell. I have a headache."   
"Ugh you clot-head!" she slapped him harder before standing up to stomp off.    
  
Which turns out might have not been the best idea since she'll never know how or what but something hit her in the head knocking her unconscious.  
  
Thorin laid there staring at the sky as the eagles arrived and he turned his head to look in the direction Bluebell had stomped off in. Fear gave him the energy to move as he spotted her tiny prone form on the shores of the river.   
"Bluebell, Mahal's beard no! The eagles are here!"   
As he reached her an elf came from out of nowhere to scoop her up in his arms and then he held out a hand to the dwarven King.   
"No, I'll be fine. Just please take care of her." he waved the blond elf off.   
The blond being shrugged and sprinted off with her in his arms and Thorin turned back to search for his kin in the ruins of Ravenhill.   
  
  
Bofur didn't leave her side for 2 days while he waited for her to wake up not even to check on his kin; he had instead inquired through Tharkun and was relieved to hear that they were well. Thranduil and Tharkun stopped by multiple times each day to check on her and the baby. Both were given clean bills of health and he was told all there was to do was just wait. She'd wake up when she was ready and that she clearly needed rest. He cleaned her face and arms up as much as he could with a little water and a soft cloth. He brushed her soft curls until they glittered in the candle light and he braided them so they wouldn't tangle while she slept.   
Her brothers had wanted to be there but Ori was busy running from meeting to meeting taking notes, Nori had a broken arm and Dori had caught a war hammer to the chest that broke some ribs. Ori had visited and was due back that evening but Bofur had denied entrance to everyone else.   
He wished he could go to his One's side but Dori had been so relieved when Tharkun told him that he was caring for Bluebell that he couldn't disappoint the silver haired dwarf.   
  
They were all damn lucky that none of the company had died, there were injuries but the worst was Fili's broken leg and Nori's arm.   
Dwalin had been by once with bandages peeking from the neck of his tunic and he looked like he wanted to run Bofur threw with his dagger when he told him to go away. Tharkun had chosen to return then and had backed Bofur up saying that Bluebell needed peace and quiet for now. The broken look that Dwalin gave them almost made Bofur want to change his mind but then he remembered that Dwalin had wanted Thorin to toss her from the ramparts.   
_How is he going to handle it when he realizes that he almost killed his child?  
  
__He doesn't deserve a child or a One.  
  
__Yavanna marked him I wish she'd punish him.  
  
_ {"Ooooh he has a good idea!" she smiled wickedly looking at the others before bringing Dwalin's mark into view.}   
  
"AHHHH!" Dwalin roared ripping the neck of his tunic open; his mark looked different. He canted his head and realized it was wilting and there were thorns wrapping around it!   
"What have I done?" he whispered to the night air.  
Balin eyed the changed mark "That cannot mean anything good, **Nadad**."  
"Aye, I think you are correct,  **Nadadel.** But I cannot remember what has happened."   
The white haired dwarf made a face of sympathy and patted his younger brother's shoulder "I'm sure the memories will return in due time."   
  
  
Bluebell opened her eyes to stare up at a canvas ceiling before squeezing them shut and groaning.   
_What did I do to myself?  
  
__Ran into a battle of 5 armies like a Fool of a Took.  
  
__The baby!  
  
_ Her hands found her belly rising up like a tiny Bag End under the blanket and she let out the breath she was holding as she felt it wriggle. She put a hand behind her and struggled to sit up.   
"Whoa whoa, here let me help you."  
Bofur gently pulled her up and fluffed the pillows behind her. He gave her soft smile as he returned to his seat beside her bed, she was in an honest to goodness bed! She returned his smile as she looked around the tent and twitched her ears to see what she could hear. There was the sounds of movement outside but nothing that sounded ominous.   
She noticed he wasn't wearing his hat for once! Instead the furry floppy thing was resting beside her leg which made her think she had woke him up with her stirring.   
"Are you alright?"   
His smile reached his eyes this time "Oh yes barely a scratch which I can't say the same for you Miss Baggins."   
She ducked her head as a blush burned her cheeks.   
"Is it over?"   
He nodded making the flaps of his hat bounce "Yup. We won."  
She swallowed the lump in her throat "And the Company?"   
"No casualties, just some broken bones and bumps. Not like they don't deserve worse." he added with a dark scowl.   
She patted his hand "That's a bit vicious."   
"After what they did to you they deserve it!" he grumped looking away.  
She looked around the tent noting the rug on the grass and the plain furniture. There was the chair Bofur was sitting in and its mate next to a small table by the far wall, candle stands were placed throughout well away from the cloth walls. There was a small chest off to the side where she could Sting laying on the lid and a coat rack of all things. There were no flowers, or get well mathoms, or missives to be seen and she found that it saddened her.   
  
"H-has anyone stopped by?" she tried not to look hopeful and folded her hands over her belly.   
Bofur gave her a knowing look "Ori a couple times, I've not let anyone else in. Not with your condition being unknown as it is. Ori had his nose buried in a book so he didn't notice anyways. Dori wanted to stop by but he had some cracked ribs and Nori broke an arm so Oin is making them stay put for now."   
She nodded smiling at the mention of her brothers and knew they would have been there otherwise.   
"What about Dwalin?"  
Bofur didn't hide the grimace he made at the mention of the big warrior "He stopped by the first day but I refused to let him in while you were unconscious. I figured you'd want to be awake when he learned about the little pebble."   
She smiled at his concern and silently agreed with him "You're a good friend. Thank you for caring for me."  
"You're like a sister me, Bluebell."  
   
  
She shifted nervously in the bed unsure of what to do with herself. Thranduil had stopped by and checked them over; he declared her fine but under weight, and insisted that she was to stay in bed for at least another day. She had agreed readily enough but asked Bofur to go tell the others that she was awake.   
  
She had already braided her hair, and straightened her nightgown, smoothing it over the very obvious belly she sported now. It looked like there was a cantaloupe under the cloth.  
She swallowed and winced at the pain there. Her throat was sore and so was her forehead but there was nothing she could do about that. She refused a pain draught not wanting to consume something could affect the little one.    
She wasn't sure who she expected to see but she had hoped that Dwalin would be the first to visit so she could handle the most painful part first.    
_See him first and deal with it like a bandage.  
  
__Rip it off quick and assess the damage._  
  
It didn't take long before her tent flap popped open and in stepped her _Cariad._  
  
  
The minute Bofur had said "she's awake." he had slipped from the camp and rushed to her tent hoping to beat the princes there. They had been too busy hugging Bofur while the hatted dwarf answered all the questions of her concerned brothers to notice him slipping away.   
The evening air was crisp as he strolled through the tents in just a tunic and pants. His armor rubbed on his stitches where an Orc had gotten a lucky shot with an arrow so Oin insisted he go without for a couple days. He felt foolish wearing knuckle dusters with no armor so everything sat in his tent.   
   
He wasn't sure what he had expected when he stepped through her tent flap but what greeted him would haunt him for all his days.   
She sat in a actual bed looking pretty as a picture while she stared up at him with uncertainty written on her face. It killed something inside him that she didn't light up at the sight of him like she used to and he wished he could remember what had happened to make her so unsure.  
She had a bruised cut at the edge of her hair the stopped right above her eyebrow, the bruise bloomed in spectacular purples and greens, and her neck, her neck made him nauseous as he dropped to his knees beside the bed. He raised his hand to touch them but drew back in fear of causing her pain. Her small hand slid over his there on the bed and the warmth that grew there spread up his arm like wild fire. He felt it begin to burn in his mark but it was a good burn and he hoped that meant that things were changing for the better. He stared at her neck for the longest time, unable to look away from the injury to it. He could see the bands of Thorin's rings and the shape of his fingers in the bruises that wrapped around her slender throat.   
Her night gown had shorter sleeves and he could see her arms were littered with tiny cuts and her hand where it rested on her belly had little scrapes on the knuckles.  
Her belly... her very pregnant belly.   
"You're... You're with child?" he whispered looking up her, feeling the room swim around him as she stared at him with wide green eyes that held something guarded in their depths.   
She nodded watching his face intently with fear and concern clearly displayed as he felt the color drain from him. Her courtship braid swung forward with the motion and the sight of that green bead made everything in his stomach rebel. He barely made it out of the tent before he began to vomit.  
   
"Dwalin? Dwalin, are you alright? _Annwyl_?" she called from inside. The sound of her concern made him vomit harder as tears threatened his eyes.   
_She's pregnant.  
  
__Sweet blessed Mahal she's pregnant!  
  
And we almost killed her!   
  
__We refused her food and clean water!  
  
__Why didn't she tell me?  
  
_ That last question burned in his mind as he dry heaved with such force that it curled his body.  
When nothing was left to come up he staggered back inside to see her standing beside the bed but she was not steady on her feet as she swayed whenever she let go of the bed post.   
She gave him  soft smile and he felt like throwing up again "Are you alright? I was getting ready to come check on you."  
   
His question forgotten he dropped to his knees in front of her and his hands hoovered over her belly. He looked up at her with the question in his eyes.  
"You can touch me." she answered.    
His big hands covered the entire mound and it felt so firm under his hands and then there under his palm he felt something move. He felt her breath stutter as the warmth of his hands sank through the thin material and he looked up to see her eyes shining down at him and her cheeks were flushed.   
She was so beautiful and the feeling of her child pressing into his hand made all thought leave his brain.  
"Dwalin say something. You're starting to make me nervous." she laughed but it was brittle sounding.   
He stared at the white covered mound and felt the life he held in his hands.   
"When will the child be here?" he asked softly.   
"In another 4 months."   
  
_4 months, then there was no way it could be his.  
  
I knew she wasn't my One.  
  
_ {"No,no,no! He can't seriously be about to do what I think he is!" Yavanna railed at the cauldron.   
She spun around to spot her husband "Why in all of Arda did you make your children so damn suspicious of everyone and yet too stubborn to learn about other cultures?"   
Mahal blushed to the roots of his red hair as the others giggled "Well I made them from stone. It comes with the territory."  
"Oh so they are literally rock heads."}  
  
  
His heart stopped and he stood up "Whose is it?"   
She sat down hard on the bed and looked up at him, stunned "What?"   
"Whose. Is. It?" he ground out.   
Her cheeks began to flush a deeper red and her ears leaned back as she stared up at him "Are you seriously asking me that?"   
He clenched his fists "Who is the father?"   
She stood up, eyes hard as diamonds as she glared and pointed to the flap "Get out."   
"What?" it was his turn to be stunned.   
"Get. Out."  
"Not till you answer me."   
"Get out right now before I start screaming." her voice rose in pitch.  
"Answer me!" he demanded feeling like his heart was breaking with every beat.   
She stepped away from him and into the middle of the tent, threw her head back and screamed "GET OUT!"   
  
Bofur had been taking his time walking the princes who were bubbling in excitement to see Bluebell and apologize for their actions again.   
A shrill scream came from the center of camp and Bofur was running before it stopped echoing with the boys close on his heels.   
"Was."   
"That."   
"Bluebell?" the princes asked.   
  
Bofur didn't answer as he sprinted to the tent and barged through the back flap. Dwalin was looming over her as she stood there in her nightgown, swaying like a rush on a windy night  
"What's going on here?"   
She turned and whispered his name "Bofur"  before she collapsed into his arms sobbing. Fili and Kili burst in right behind him followed quickly by Thranduil's guards.    
"What did you do?" he roared at the bald dwarf.   
The big idiot just stood there clenching and unclenching his hands, staring at Bluebell in Bofur's arms.   
Her sobbing slowed enough for her to whisper in his ear "He asked who the father was."   
"No."   
She nodded and the sobs started up again.   
"Fili. Kili."   
"Yes?" came the twin response.   
"Take him back to camp and if you see him send Tharkun back."   
  
The elves stationed themselves outside the entrances to her tent while Bluebell cried herself to sleep in his arms long before anyone came back. Kili popped his head in as Bofur was placing her back in bed, he noticed the young prince was rubbing his knuckles.  
"Dwalin give you trouble?"   
Kili shrugged "A little. He kept going on about how he deserved an answer and that he was a fool to think she was his One. He kept trying to throw us off and come back so I decked him. He's with Uncle now."   
He sank into the chair with a groan while rubbing his face before gesturing for Kili to take the other seat.   
"Leave it to Dwalin to cock up learning he's going to be a father."   
Kili sputtered "Bluebell's pregnant?"  
Bofur leaned his head back to stare at the ceiling "Yup and for some reason Dwalin doesn't think it's his."   
"How could it not be?!" Kili hissed in outrage.   
  
  
Thorin and Balin watched Dwalin rage and destroy everything in the sitting room. He wasn't making any sense to them so they waited for him to run out of steam and hopefully be able to converse coherently.   
Dain strolled in through the demolished door and watched at Dwalin smashed an arm chair "What's his problem."   
Thorin looked up his cousin from where he sat on the stone floor "We're not sure. Fili and Kili brought him back from seeing Bluebell like this. He tried to leave and Kili punched him."   
Dain leaned against the wall and took the weight off his metal leg "Who is this Bluebell?"   
"His  **Khebabmudtu."** answered Balin from where he was writing at a desk he saved.   
" **NO. SHE'S. NOT."** the bald warrior roared before he tossed the demolished chair in the fire place.   
"Well is she or isn't she?" Dain scratched his red Mohawk.  
"She is." was the twin answer from Thorin and Balin while Dwalin once again roared that she wasn't.   
"How is she suddenly not?" asked Thorin. He was tired of watching Dwalin destroy his furniture and his ass was going numb from sitting on the cold stone floor for so long.   
Dwalin stopped from ripping down a tapestry to look at his best friend "Because she's pregnant."   
"Congratulations!" Dain whooped while Balin rushed to hug his brother.   
"No!" he pushed Balin away "It's not mine."   
Thorin was pretty sure his eyes brows touched his hair line "How could it not be?"   
Dwalin seemed to deflate in front of them "She says it'll be here in 4 months."   
"SO?"   
His shield brother dropped down next to him and laid his head on Thorin's shoulder; something he hadn't done since Moria and answered "Because dwarrow pregnancies last a year."   
Balin leaned over and popped Dwalin on the back of his head.   
**SMACK**   
"Yes but Bluebell isn't a dwarf now, is she?"   
"She isn't?" asked Dain looking thoroughly confused.   
"No, Cousin. She's a Hobbit lass from the Shire." Thorin answered him.   
"Well I'll be! Where did you find her?" Dain looked intrigued so Thorin told him the tale of how Miss Bluebell Baggins came to join their quest.   
  
"She's not a Dwarf." Dwalin repeated considerably later as Thorin finished his tale.   
"Ya just getting to that now? Did ya get hit in the head during the battle?" Dain quipped staring a Dwalin.   
Thorin watched his friend struggle up from the wall and held his breath as he waited to see if he was going to destroy more of his furnishings.   
Dwalin walked from the room and down the hall to another room they had just cleared. He heard the door click and looked at Balin who was staring after his little brother.   
"Do you want to go sit with him or do you want me to?"   
  
"Help me up and I'll go."   
  
  
Sleep did not come easily to Dwalin that night in his room in Erebor that he shared with Thorin.  
  
Irmo seemed to be avoiding him and considering what Yavanna did to his soul mark it wouldn't surprise him at all.   
"What did I do to deserve this?" he moaned into his hands. "Mahal, please give me some kind of answer."   
  
{"As you wish" whispered Irmo.}   
  
The light was so bright that Dwalin thought he had fallen asleep outside again before he blinked and realized that he was standing outside, in the sun and that it was warm.    
He was startled to see himself walking up the slope towards... Erebor.   
He turned and watched Nori toss something to Bluebell and she immediately blushed before tucking it away.   
_Can they see me?  
  
_ His question was answered as Bluebell walked right through him to go talk to _him_.   
  
He watched things unfold and the knot in his stomach grew as he watched them share tender moments before she entered the secret tunnel. His vow to her echoed through his mind and his mouth tasted metallic with the knowledge that his actions this night broke it.  
This time though he followed her down the tunnel and he watched in awe as she riddled with the damn dragon, and how she eluded him. He heard the conversation and his stomach dropped as Smaug informed her that she was pregnant and told her things that made his stomach feel like he had swallowed a chunk of iron ore.   
He was struck dumb as she squared off against the Wyrm and threw her ring at it. Then the damn thing's head exploded! 

He laughed as he watched them bumble down the stairs and he cut the end of a dead dragon's tail off.   
  
"We need to talk later when we're alone."   
  
_She was going to tell me then.  
  
_ Dwalin watched in growing horror how one by one they all fell to the dragon sickness, how Bluebell had tried to talk sense to them as their food ran low, how she sat in the dark and talked to her belly about how amazing it's Daddy was and that right now was just a bump in the road.   
He felt tears run into his beard as she lost more weight while her small belly grew during those weeks.   
"You're a Hobbit." those words rang in his soul.   
_She's a Hobbit.  
  
__A Hobbit.  
  
__Not a Dwarf.  
_  
{"YES! He can be taught!" clapped Yavanna as the thought rang through the clearing where the Valar were gathered.   
"Does this mean he can fix what he did?" Nessa bounced around playing with butterflies that Yavanna's flowers drew.   
"If he is worth his salt he will. He's from the line of Durin, they are not honor-less and don't mistreat females." Mahal looked sure of it as he crossed his arms over his bare chest.   
"But can Bluebell forgive everything that's happened? She has to think of her child now and she will not put it at risk for anything?" observed Varda.  
"No matter her decision I know Olorin will watch over her." Manwe put his arm around Yavanna. } _  
  
_ He watched her hide her belly from him and from the look on his own face he couldn't blame her.   
  
His stomach ached at the first incident on the wall where they all hurled jibs at her as she argued that they wouldn't survive without food.   
  
His mouth ran dry as he watched her slip away to bargain for their safety with the Elves and the Men, and then she ran back before the sun rose.   
  
He wanted to throw up as he watched himself try to force her to be intimate and knew he owed Bofur much for protecting her from him. .  
  
His heart was in his throat as he watched Thorin dangle her over the wall while they encouraged him to drop her! He wanted to carve out his own heart as she pleaded for her life and looked to him for help only for him to deny her. Then he had actually accused her of replacing him with Bofur! The haunted, broken look in her eyes as she whispered "never." made him want to toss himself from the rampart.   
  
He was ready to wake up but apparently that wasn't going to happen yet as he followed his sobbing One to the camp of elves.   
There he heard Tharkun ask her softly who that father was and his name rang out like a crystal bell.  
  
"Dwalin's."   
  
Time flowed quickly through the battle and he saw her help save the princes and Thorin.   
  
He watched her wait for him to visit before deciding to send Bofur to tell them she was awake, how she fidgeted and fussed at her appearance pulled at his heart strings. He could almost taste how nervous she was as he walked in. The love that was on her face shone so bright he thought he'd go blind staring at her before she shuttered it as he had stared down at her. He had been so focused on her belly that he had missed how she glowed, he had been so caught up in self loathing and pity he had missed it all. She had held her breath when he laid his hands on her and he understood why now. When he had been so busy caressing the part of her growing a new life he had missed the love that poured from her eyes watching what should have been a precious moment. Instead he had stood up and shattered it. Shattered her, kicked while she was down and then questioned her honor as his bead swung in her hair.   
He saw her cry herself out in Bofur's arms, asking the toy maker why he had said that to her, why did he doubted her. Bofur never slandered him even though he had ample opportunity to; he just held her and told her everything would be alright.   
  
  
He lurched up from the bed only to fall out the other side and he grabbed the basin from the night stand. His stomach rolled and heaved until all that ran from his mouth was bile and finally just foam. He felt strong arms come around his shoulders and pulled him up to sit on the bed still cradling the basin.   
"Dwalin, what is it?" Thorin's deep voiced rumbled through the darkness.   
He tried to suck in a breath of air only for it to leave him as a sob.  
  
"I remember."   
  
  
Bluebell slowly recovered from her physical injuries but the wounds to her heart refused to heal and it wasn't unusual to find her crying when she thought she was alone. Her tent became a favorite for the elven healers to linger in.   
Turns out elves have a burning affection for pregnant beings and she was very fascinating to them. They would talk to her about all sorts of things from books to herb lore while they felt her belly, they talked to the baby as well, sang to it and even spoke Sindarin to it to see how it would react.   
Thranduil even became a frequent visitor of hers; he started out siting that he was just checking her health but then he would linger. Finally he admitted that he found peaceful there with her and sought her out when negotiations with the Dwarves and Men became too much.   
  
A few days after the incident happened the Princes came back and profusely apologized to her, hugging her tightly but carefully. She spent the rest of the day sandwiched between them hearing all the gossip they had picked up. They told about how most of the dwarves had moved back into the Mountain and were working on the repairs that should have been done the first time.   
"We picked out the best room for you!" chirped Kili from where he was cuddled up on the left side of her, his hand seemingly fused to her belly in hopes that his little cousin would wake up.   
"It's right between ours and Amads! It has one of the best views." Fili added from where he reclined behind her. Sitting leaning back was easier on his leg while it finished mending so she was leaning back against his chest.   
"That sounds lovely boys. Hopefully I can see it soon. I am still banished currently." she reminded them patting their hands.   
_If I return to the Mountain.  
  
__What if Dwalin doesn't want me there._    
  
They passed the time in silence until Kili began to hum again tracing runes on her belly. This time she recognized the song, it was one that she had sung while they were traveling.   
"I didn't know you were listening to me sing." she smiled as she ran her fingers through his hair.   
"I didn't mean to at first but then it sounded so nice and it reminded me of home. Would you sing the traveling song, please?" Kili asked softly.    
"I love that one! Please Bluebell?" chimed Fili.   
_They sound so young.  
  
_ "Of course, my boys."  
She cleared her throat and started humming the beginning strains and she could almost see the notes drifting on the winter breeze. Her clear soprano rang clear as she lifted her voice for the first time in months.   
"These fleeting charms of earth.  
Farewell, your springs of joy are dry  
My soul now seeks another home  
A brighter world on high"  
  
Kili's baritone wound around hers for the refrain and lifted the song to new levels in her heart.    
"I'm a long time travelling here below  
I'm a long time travelling away from home  
I'm a long time travelling here below  
To lay this body down"  
  
She felt tears begin to burn behind her eyes but was pleased when her voice stayed true.  
  
"Farewell kind friends whose tender care  
Has long engaged my love  
Your fond embrace I now exchange  
For better friends above"   
  
The baby must have appreciated their song as it rolled against Kili's hand and he hurriedly grabbed Fili's so he could feel.  
  
"I'm a long time travelling here below  
I'm a long time travelling away from home  
I'm a long time travelling here below  
To lay this body down..."  
  
"I'm a long time traveling here below,  
I'm a long time traveling away from home.  
I'm a long time traveling here below  
To lay this body down,  
To lay this body down, "  
  
  
She didn't even notice the tears that ran as she nestled between the Princes and her child moved to its own song.   
  
  
Thorin stopped outside the tent and listened. Bluebell was singing and then another voice joined hers, instead of taking away it seemed to add to it and he could almost touch the emotion that was wrapped around the lyrics.   
The elves that had been walking past stopped when he did to stand and listen. He was surprised to find a tear on his cheek and even more so to see the elves dashing tears from their own eyes.   
  
"May I come in?" he called.   
The surprises kept coming when Kili was the one to open the flap for him and the secured it behind him to keep out the winter.   
It was cozy in her tent, warmth and comfort visible from the things accumulated there but it didn't stop Thorin from shivering.   
Kili sat at the foot of the bed while Fili was at the head of it with Bluebell leaning back against him.   
"Oh this isn't proper" she started to get up "Here let me join you at the table."  
Her red jacket fell open revealing her prominent belly and he found he couldn't pull his eyes away from it until a growl from Kili caught his attention.   
"Mistress Baggins please, stay where you are comfortable and warm. I cannot stay long unfortunately since I'm due for another meeting with the elves and Bard."   
Relief was evident on her face as she settled back against Fili.   
"I'd stand Uncle but my leg..."  
He waved away Fili's excuse "It's alright Fili, I understand."   
He stepped forward to stand by the bed and held out his hand to Bluebell. She hesitantly held her own small hand out and gasped when one of Thorin's braids landed in it. He dropped to one knee and folded her fingers over the hank of hair.   
"Bluebell Baggins' I have wronged you in more ways than one and there no way in this life time I can apologize enough for what I did or my actions against you. I put you and your unborn child at risk more than once and would not listen to reason even though you did everything but beat on my head. I am so so sorry for everything and I wanted to let you know that I have officially rescinded your banishment. I would shave my whole head to ask your forgiveness but I know you'd call me an idiot for cutting my hair in the winter."   
She stared at him while clutching his braid and he couldn't read what was in her eyes no matter how hard he tried.   
_Where is Dis when I need her?  
  
_ He shot a look at Kili who was gaping at them. The brunette snapped his mouth shut and mimed hugging at him. He held his arms out and she almost knocked him over as she launched herself at him crying.   
" **She's still crying! What do I do?"** he hissed at his nephews.   
Kili mimed rubbing her back and saying 'there there' while Fili ventured on to suggesting Thorin try to kiss her which made Kili kick his brother in his good leg.   
"There there Bluebell."   
"I forgive you." she sniffled against the color of his blue jacket and hugged him tighter. He became very aware of how thin she was and the firmness of her belly wedged between them.   
  
Wide blue eyes met watery green in stunned silence.   
  
  
"Tharkun, can I have a word?" Thorin caught the Wizard between meetings.   
"Of course, Master Oakenshield. Oh excuse me, I mean your majesty." the gray wizard bowed to him.   
"Please, none of that." he waved off Tharkun's theatrics. "Walk with me?"   
The tall Man nodded and they made their way away from the tents.   
"Is Bluebell alright? Honestly, alright? When I spoke to her earlier she hugged me and she felt so thin." Thorin turned worried blue eyes to study Tharkun's face and what he read there did not make him feel better.  
"She is as well as can be expected in all honesty. With the shortage of food, all the stress she's been under and now this whole ordeal with Dwalin basically refusing her it's a wonder she's still pregnant."   
Thorin felt like the bottom of his stomach just dropped to his feet. "It's that bad that the baby is at risk?"   
He received a nod from the wizard that chilled him to his core.   
"At the rate things are going I do not think she will survive the birth." his voice was a grey as his robes as it was carried on the winds.  
"No," he breathed "She can't have survived so much before this to have it end like that. What can we do? Please Tharkun, tell me I'll do whatever I can."   
The Istari sank down on to a boulder that put him at eye level with Thorin "She is suffering from rejection. Hobbits are very family based creatures especially when they are pregnant. They need people they trust and love around them for them to feel safe. Bluebell needs her family and she needs green growing things which I know in winter is hard to find."   
"I will tell her brothers that she needs them. I would prefer her to return to the Mountain but I'm not sure she's comfortable with that just yet. I'll also tell Kili and Fili to visit her more. What else can I do?"   
Tharkun rubbed his forehead "You could try to talk some sense into Dwalin. I doubt he realizes that he's putting her health at risk. Has he even realized it his child?"   
Thorin shook his head "I do not know for sure. He has shut himself away in the Royal Forge. Only his brother has spoken to him in the last week."   
"Damn." the elder swore causing Thorin's eye brows to hike in surprise "Master Beorn has offered to take Bluebell home with him to recuperate. She hasn't decided yet. I think she's waiting to see what that block head is going to do."   
"I'll try to talk to him."   
  
{"What is going on with your Hobbit?" queried Nessa looking at Yavanna who was sitting in the grass surrounded by sunflowers that were trying to console her.   
"When a _Cariad_ is rejected they end up _Calon yn sal_ and they can begin to fade. The only reason Bluebell isn't fading is because of the baby." Yavanna answered her petting one of the sunflowers.   
"Oh No!" Nessa cried her tears making ripples in the images that flashed in the cauldron.   
"Is she going to die? Can Dwalin fix this?" Varda asked with tears of her own.   
"If he moves quickly he can reverse the fade but once the baby is born she won't last the week." Yavanna leaned into Mahal's shoulder everything about her dimming in sadness.   
"He'll fix it. I know he will" Mahal rubbed her back and they waited.}  
  
  
Dwalin worked in the forge night and day for a week making gifts for Bluebell. His brother told him to just go talk to her but that wasn't good enough in his mind.   
_She needs to see how sorry I am.  
  
__Beautiful gifts will do it.  
  
__I will cover her in gems and then I'll apologize.  
  
__When she sees the stars that I have hung on chains for her she'll forgive me.  
  
_ Beorn's offer ate at her as time continued to tick by. The elves spent more and more time with her, bringing her small treats and the standard 7 meals but she found she couldn't eat it all. Her belly grew as the rest of her shrunk.   
Her brothers along with Bofur were there every day and that made the waiting more bearable, the Princes visited often too and cuddled her which lifted her spirits but the dwarf she kept waiting on never seemed to show up.   
Sadness wore away her heart until she thought all she had left was a bottomless hole that she was sure you could hear the wind howl in.   
Thorin stopped in between meetings and he apologized far too often. When she asked where Dwalin was Thorin's eyes dimmed and he told her he was still in the forge.   
  
  
"Dwalin, son of Fundin, You are wasting precious time fashioning this bit and bobs that you know she won't care about! Why are you not going to her?" Balin demanded from his brother's sweaty back.   
"I just need more time."   
  
Balin grabbed Dwalin's damp shoulder and spun him to face him. "You have to go see her! **Ishgimruk**!"  
Dwalin dropped his head in defeat and removed his leather apron.   
Balin stepped back to let the light fall on Dwalin's chest "What happened to your Mark?"   
"I think I'm too late."   
Everything but the Ivy and Ferns had wilted and some of the flowers were faded to barely visible. Thorns wrapped around them as though choking them but where the thorns pierced him Dwalin bled.   
"Can you take these to her and I'll be right there. I want wash up."   
  
  
Bluebell smiled at him from where she was reclined on the bed. "Balin! I'm so happy to see you!"  
_Thorin wasn't kidding she is wasting away.  
_  
_Dwalin you better get here quickly._  
  
She stood to hug him and he couldn't get over the size of her belly.   
"My goodness you've grown! Much longer?"   
A thin hand smoothed her shirt over it "3 months give or take."   
"I cannot wait." he smiled at her.   
She swayed next to him and he immediately helped her sit on the bed. He stayed kneeling in front of her as she regained a bit of the color in her cheeks.   
"Are you alright, my dear?"   
She gave him a small smile "I'm fine. It's just part of being rejected."   
He couldn't help the confused look he gave her "Rejected? What are you talking about?"   
She looked at him like he was daft "Dwalin has rejected me. I could have ignored what he did during the dragon sickness but then he accused me of being unfaithful and said the child is not his. He's rejected my love. The fade will wait till I deliver."   
He had so many questions but the pressing one "What is 'the fade'"  
She gave him a sad smile "It's where I die. No Hobbit has survived being rejected or any other loss of their Cariad. My mother made it 8 years before she faded but she was determined to see me to majority. Only missed it by 3 years."   
It felt his heart was in an iron grip.  
_It's where I die.  
  
_ "Bluebell, you can't die! Dwalin didn't reject you! Here I have a gift for you from him." He put the ear cuffs in her hand.   
She looked down at the gold curls and her eyes hardened "Is this a joke?"   
He faltered, he was expecting happiness, tears maybe not anger "No. He asked me to bring these to you."   
She poked at the cuffs decorated in Aventurine in the shape of flowers and then reached up to pull out her courtship bead.   
"You can return these to him. He didn't have to be rude in telling me he was no longer interested."   
  
Balin now knew what a fish out of water felt like as he sat there opening and shutting his mouth while Bluebell moved around him.   
"Lass I think there has been a great misunderstanding."   
She held up a hand to stop him, her ears were laid back "Stop defending him Balin. You brought me his _gift._ It's done. He's made it clear what he thinks of me. I never thought he would be cruel enough to call me a whore but I've been wrong about a lot on this quest."   
He pushed to his feet as she went to the tent flap "Bluebell how did he call you a whore?"   
She left the tent and walked quickly away from him, her gold curls blowing in the wind and he had to trot to keep up with her.   
"Bluebell, please explain this to me." he pleaded.   
She spun to face him, silver tracks on her cheeks as she pulled her coat tight against her but it wouldn't close over her belly.   
"Here." he untied his red cloak and wrapped it around her and put the hood up.   
"Earring, Balin. Have you ever seen me wear earrings?"   
He shook his head.   
"That's because proper Hobbit's don't wear them! They are the sign of whore! Our ears are a erogenous zone and to draw attention to them is frowned upon unless you're in the business of selling your body. Now if you'll excuse me I have someone to see. Thank you, **Undad** for your cloak. I'll return it."   
"Keep it. It'll make me happy to know you and my niece are warm."   
She gave him a rare smile and he felt like he was looking at the sun "You think it's a girl?"   
"I've always wanted a daughter or niece so I can hope."   
She kissed his cheek and then darted through the throng of elves.   
_Dwalin what have you done?  
  
How are we going to fix this?   
  
I need Thorin's help.  
  
  
  
_ "I accept your offer."   
"Wonderful, little bunny! We should make my home before your kit arrives. We'll leave in the morning before the snow flies."   
"I'll be ready." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song Bluebell sings is Long Time Traveler. The version I was listening to was the Wailing Jenny's.  
> Calon yn sal~ Heart Sick.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Think racing through the airport to catch your love interest to stop them from leaving your life forever kind of moment.

Bluebell pulled Balin's blood red cloak tight around her as she stood on the edge of the forest and looked back at Erebor. She knew this would be the last time she saw it in this life and she rubbed a hand over her burgeoning belly.   
_Say good bye to your Adad little one.  
  
__Hopefully he'll come for you eventually.  
  
If not I know your Uncles will raise you right. _

 

{"No! Stop! Bluebell what are you doing?" Yavanna shouted at the image in the water. Her voice was loud that the trees behind Bluebell began to creep closer together and the bushes behind the Valar doubled in size.  
"How can she leave?" peeped Nessa with tears in her eyes.   
"We have to do something! We can't just let her leave like this! Husband do something!" Varda whirled on Manwe.  
He held his hands up "All I can do is make the weather work against them and try to speed Olorin to them."  
"Do it."   
"I'll help with the rain. " Ulmo volunteered.   
"I can try to point out how she is wrong in a dream" Irmo offered.   
"Never tell a pregnant Hobbit she's wrong." Yavanna warned him "show her his intentions like you did Dwalin with the memories."   
"I will answer Dwalin if he comes to me. I think Bluebell is overreacting." Mahal looked pleased while Yavanna rolled her eyes at him.} 

 _  
_ "Bluebell, come on!" shouted Dori from his pony at the front.   
"I'm coming! Just saying good bye." she climbed up on the cart next to Beorn and leaned against him for the warmth.  
  
They made good time but it helped that Beorn had the way memorized and the elven escort. Thranduil had insisted his son help them through Mirkwood and be there to aid the Hobbit he had grown so fond of.  
He had named her  _Mellon_ before she departed. 

   
  
  
"What do you mean she's gone?" roared Dwalin at the elves that looked down their noses at him.   
"She is no longer here. What are you not understanding? She left sometime in the night 3 days ago." one of the leaf eaters sneered at him.  
The other guards had a look he felt was reserved for shit that had been stepped in and he knew that they despised him for how he had treated his One.   
  
Dwalin felt the pain grow in his chest as he stormed back to Erebor.   
  
  
Gandalf stormed into the stone rooms ahead of the guards that were supposed to prevent that kind of thing looking very similar to the Storm Crow he had been named.   
"What have you done with my Hobbit?" he roared at Dwalin and Thorin.   
He had stepped away from camp to meet with Radagast about the spiders still creeping through Mirkwood's boundaries only to return and find Bluebell, her brothers, Beorn and the elf Prince gone without a trace. THEN a healer had handed him a envelope with her delicate scrawl filling it, informing him that her Cariad had not only rejected her (which he knew) but that she was fading (knew that too) and thought distance might help her AND that what sealed her decision was Dwalin basically calling her a Whore.  
To say that he was unbelievably pissed off was an understatement.   
Manwe had spoke to him through the winter winds telling him that time was short for saving her. He had taken the Mountain by storm and none stood in his way of finding the dwarf that was responsible for it all.   
"She's gone, Tharkun." Thorin answered him looking very contrite in the face of the wizards anger.   
"I know that, Master Oakenshield. I want to hear from his" he gestured towards Dwalin's back staring into the fire "lips how he drove away his mate. His pregnant One that he threw away."   
Thorin ran a hand over his face and watched Dwalin stare unmoving into the fire.   
_I'll make him talk.  
  
__I'll make him feel.  
  
_ "Can either of you tell me how long she's been gone now? How long she's been out in these storms while you sit safe and warm in  _your_ kingdom that  _she_ helped you reclaim?"   
Thorin flinched as though he's struck him with his staff. The silence stretched until between them until Gandalf didn't trust himself to talk.   
"Five and half days."   
Kili stepped into the room looking more somber than Gandalf had ever seen him and it pained the Elder to see the happiness gone from his eyes.   
He nodded at the Prince before turning his steel gaze back to the cause of it all. "So your pregnant mate is out in this weather," he motioned to the window where rain and snow shook the glass "And you're here. I'm assuming that means it's true, you have forsaken her and your child."   
His voice rang through the room and the look Kili and Thorin wore was one of heartbreak and uncertainty.   
"No." Dwalin's voice sounded like a thunder crack in the quiet room.   
"Really? Then why are you not out looking for her? Do you not realize her time is limited? Or do you not care and you'll go once you're sure she's no longer in this world to claim your child from her mourning brothers? Or is she right that you think she's a whore and the child is someone else's spawn?"  
_I hate this.  
  
__I don't speak to people like this!  
  
__But it's the truth_ Manwe answered his turmoil.   
  
_Can't I get him to realize his errors another way?  
  
__In all your years have Dwarves ever listened to the rational side of things at first? Mahal says this is the quickest way to handle it. Yavanna is cheering for you and says she'll make a new flower for you if this works_ he could hear the humor in Manwe's voice.   
  
"The child is mine."   
Gandalf arched a grey brow "Truly? Then why are you leaving it's mother to die?"   
The warrior turned to stare at him, his eyes mercurial "What do you mean die? Why would Bluebell die?"   
Before he could answer Kili let out a derisive snort "Where have you been? What part of she's fading did you fucking miss?" he climbed to his feet and Gandalf watched as anger mixed with grief poured to the front of the younger dwarf's face.   
"She. Is. Dying. Because. Of. You." Kili spelled out with tears running into his sparse whiskers.   
"That's not possible. She was fine when I saw her last." Dwalin denied his eyes shifting to the grey of the clouds outside.   
Gandalf felt his scowl deepen as he knew that even that long ago she had been bruised and thinning.  
"The last time you saw her was almost 3 weeks ago." Thorin pointed out from his place on the sofa anger beginning to crystallize in his blue eyes while his cheeks flushed.   
The tattooed dwarf looked like he had been hit with his own war hammer "No. That's not right. How can that be right?"   
"Because you arrogant, stone headed, prick, you were too busy wallowing in self-pity and then crafting things that you know she wouldn't even want just so you wouldn't have to go admit you were wrong!" bellowed a completely unexpected voice from the doorway.   
His neck popped he turned so fast to see who was behind him and it was the last person he had ever expected to see shouting at Dwalin like that.   
  
Balin.   
  
And he looked furious.   
  
They were no fools as he and Thorin ducked into the bedroom to watch as Balin literally ripped beat his brother down for being the world's biggest, thickest, weed brained ass hat.   
   
  
  
It rained.   
  
And it rained some more, sometimes with snowflakes in it but the further they traveled into Mirkwood the less there was snow.   
  
At first Bluebell had thought the weather was mirroring her emotions but when she felt all cried out on the second day the rain had kept coming down in sheets.  
   
Creeks swelled, paths became so muddy the cart kept getting stuck and only Dori and Beorn's combined strengths saved them from a broken axle two days in.   
Legolas had remembered some old tree houses nearby but when she had seen the fraying rope ladder it was decided that wasn't the place for an quite pregnant Hobbit. Next Beorn found a cave that seemed quite cozy and so they settled in to to wait.   
But after 4 days rain and no end in sight Bluebell was miserable. She hadn't been dry in almost a week, she was stiff from sleeping on the ground, the cave smelled funny and she was pretty sure she saw things moving in the rain.   
Turns out she was right and the others had run out to inspect it leaving her, Bofur and Ori behind the latter clutching their respective mattock and sling shot at the ready.  
They huddled together as they heard the sounds of fighting break out followed by shouts and hissing from what Bluebell recognized as those Valar-forsake spiders.    
  
The others returned quickly enough and as Legolas was wringing out his soaked blond her he stated "We cannot stay here. They will come back with more next time. We have to move on."  
"But where? We can't cross that cursed stream when it's like this!" Bluebell started to breath heavy, her heart was racing and all she could do was wrap her arms around her belly. Dori pulled her against him a bear hug while shooting the elf prince a dirty look.   
"It'll be alright,  **Namadith**. We won't let any harm come to you or our little  **mizimith.** " Ori patted her hand since that was all her could reach of her.   
She felt herself relax in her eldest brother's embrace listening to the steady beat of his heart and she found herself dozing off standing there.   
She barely felt Dori scoop her up and sit against the cave wall tucking her against him under her coat to warm her.   
"I never wanted to go back there but what about your palace?" Nori asked the prince sparing a concerned glance back at his failing sister.   
"It's only a couple hours from here. It would be the safest for waiting out this bizarre weather." Legolas agreed looking to Bluebell "I think it would be best for her."  
The brothers and skin changer nodded while packing up.   
  
  
  
{"How long do you think we can keep them there?" Mahal asked as they watched Dwalin pack.  
"If he moves his hairy ass not long, they should be able to make it there in 2 days if they ride hard." Yavanna calculated smirking at the look her husband sent her for the foul language about one of his children.   
"How will they know where she is?" Nessa wondered dancing in the sprinkling of rain that fell around the clearing but not in the inner sanctum where the cauldron sat.   
"I've taken care of that through Olorin." Manwe looked pleased with himself.  
"Can't you make Mirkwood cooperate?" Yavanna turned to her brother Orome "Ease their passage some how?"    
The Lord of Forests shook his head "Trees are damn stubborn as it is but this one is so tainted that it's impossible. Those eight legged bastards won't even listen to me. Me, The Huntsman!"  
"Pity we can't just burn the whole thing down." muttered Yavanna showing a surprising blood thirsty streak.   
"Let's make it happen, Cap'n!" shouted Tulkas.   
"NO BURNING DOWN THE FOREST!" the rest shouted.}  
  
  
  
Dwalin stared up at the horse Tharkun expected him to ride after Bluebell on.   
_You've got to be kidding me.  
  
__Bluebell riddled with a dragon for you and you can't ride a horse for her?_ came back a voice that sounded suspiciously like his brothers countered.  
  
Balin had given him an extreme tongue lashing and dressing down before his mild mannered brother has prompt whooped his ass all over the sitting room.   
  
"Should I find you a box?" Tharkun was smirking at him from his place on the ground. It had been decided that Dwalin and Thorin would go after the group while Fili oversaw everything in Erebor.   
Thorin had mounted his black steed without a word of complaint and now looked at Dwalin with a look he had thought was only reserved for Thranduil.   
_I don't need a ruddy box.  
  
_ He swung up with an ease that didn't go with his size and looked at Balin who glared back.   
"Bring her back or consider yourself an orphan." the words were carved into his heart.   
Thorin nodded at his adviser "Don't let the boys and Dain burn down the Mountain. We'll be back in a few days hopefully."   
"Hey we resent that!" the trio exclaimed at the back of their monarch and his best friend.   
  
They rode hard eating up ground similar to how he ate cookies when they were available and he was pleased with the distance despite the shite weather. They found an outcropping to rest under that horses fit as well and that was where Gandalf found them the following morning.   
"Fancy meeting you here." he smirked.   
They just glared at the daft wizard wondering how he had popped up so silently when he dropped a bomb on them "Bluebell didn't make it Beorn's."   
"What do you mean she didn't make it? Where is she? Is she alright? What about the baby? It's too soon for it to be born right?" he couldn't stop the barrage of questions that poured from him and with each one the wizard's smile seemed to grow.   
He shared a look with Thorin as his heart was threatening to rip from his chest.   
"What are you playing at, you gray git?" Thorin growled.   
"It's nice to see that Master Dwalin actually does care about his One and child. He's acted aloof for so long I thought he was acting out proprieties sake and not real concern."  
"Why you orc rutting..." Dwalin was ready to cleave the wizard in half when Tharkun drew to his full height and the lightening seemed to arc around him.   
"Do not curse at me, you twice damned beardless excuse of a dwarf!" he thundered. "I am here to escort you to Bluebell in the realm of Mirkwood where she is at Thranduil's palace."   
He looked to Thorin for aid only to receive a look that basically said "You're on your own. I don't fuck with wizards."  
"Take me to get my **Khebabmudtu**." he growled.   
  
  
Bluebell sighed as she awoke feeling warm for the first time in weeks and looked around the stately room that she had been given with her brothers. She looked to her right and left to smile at Nori and Ori snuggled up against her sides sleeping.   
_Why am I awake even?  
  
_ Her thought was answered by a kick to the bladder.   
_Ah yes my full bladder in encroaching on your limited space isn't it little one?  
  
_ The answering roll made her smile and it felt good for once.   
She slid from between the sleeping dwarrow and made her way to the attached bathroom where she relieved the pressure and appeased the tiny being camped out in her belly. She grimaced as she studied herself in the mirror; her face was pale and far too thin for a respectable Hobbit, her hair was sad looking and the drooping tendrils were not the curls that she normally hated. She had dirt smudged on her forehead and she felt her shirt sticking to her.   
The sunken stone tub behind was fed by a waterfall that looked amazing and she couldn't resist the temptation to get clean.   
The water eased the ache in her lower back and felt amazing being so buoyant.   
She rose from the warm water feeling quite refreshed and returned to the room where her brothers still snoozed.   
_Where is Dori?  
  
_ It was a pleasant surprise to find a nightgown in almost her size laying on the trunk at the foot of the large bed. It fit well over her large belly and for the first time in forever she felt hungry.   
Like magic the door swung open to reveal her eldest brother carrying a very full tray and he almost dropped when he saw her standing there before the roaring fire. He slid the array of food onto a table before rushing over to her.   
"Bluebell, are you alright? I didn't expect you to be awake so soon. You... you look better actually." The worry that shone in his silvery blue eyes made her feel warmer still as she slowly smiled at him.  
"I'm alright, _Annwyl._ I actually feel better than I have in weeks. It's very odd to me. I've spent so long feeling awful and knowing I was fading that I don't know what's going on."   
Dori guided her to sit beside the table and fixed her tea just the way she liked it before putting fruit and a scone on a plate for her.   
"Could something be reversing the effects of the fade?"    
"Not that I've ever heard but I've only seen Hobbit's fade after their _Cariad_ has died. There is no way to reverse death."   
  
  
If Dwalin didn't know better he had have thought the underbrush was actually moving out of the way of his mount as they sped down the path towards the Palace of the once Greenwood. The torrential winter rains had made things harder than they had expected with them almost bogging down twice where they had to walk the horse until they found harder ground.   
  
The palace loomed over them and he had to admit when you're not addled by spider venom it's kinda impressive.  
Tharkun shouted something the language of the elves and the massive gates swung open to admit them.   
  
  
Bluebell knew she should stop being surprised by the things Dwarves do but it didn't stop her from freezing as she saw Dwalin heading towards her looking like something out of her wilder dreams where he found her and told her he was an idiot, and that he loved her, and then they rode off into the sunset.   
She shook her head and opened her eyes to see him stopped just feet from her, staring at her like he had before, before the gold sickness, the battle, before everything had turned to ash.   
"What do you want?" her voice sounded funny and she wasn't sure why.   
He had so many emotions on his face that she couldn't tell what he was feeling or thinking. He sank to his knees in front of her putting himself at eye level with her and having him so near made it hard for her to breath. She wanted to reach out and touch him so badly, to card her fingers through his beard and smooth the lines from his brow, to cover his bald head in kisses and to feel him hold her.   
"I came for you." he breathed as he looked down with tears lining his lower lids and she felt her treacherous heart clench.   
"I came to beg your forgiveness for my actions and to take you home if you'll still have me. I know I have broken my vow to you and I am honor-less before you. But please, Bluebell, know that I have not rejected you or our child despite my actions. Please forgive me. I love you."  
_Is this part of fading?  
  
__Cruel hallucinations?  
  
_ She reached out and poked his shoulder.   
_Mahal's beard he's real! He's actually here.  
  
__And he's apologizing.  
  
__And professing his love to me, wants me to come home.  
  
__What do I do? Do I go with him? Do I hit him?  
  
_ She felt like she was watching from outside her body as he drew a dagger and cut his beard off just below his chin so that it was almost the same length as Thorin's!  
  
_Is it just me or is it hot in here?  
  
_ She stared into his moonlight eyes and did what any Baggins would do when hit with such a surprise.   
"I... Nope." and she fainted into his arms.   
  
  
  
Bluebell woke up once again staring at the damn ceiling and growled at the racket that of what sounded like raccoons fighting coming from somewhere behind her.   
_This shit is getting old.  
  
_ She sat up and realized that for the first time in a long time she hadn't gotten light headed by the simple action. She looked around surprised to find that she was on a couch in the library, the exact place she had been going when Dwalin had appeared.   
_Dwalin.  
  
__Had he really cut off his beard and mustache?  
  
_ She looked towards the door where he was whisper yelling at her brothers and Bofur. He looked so different missing those lengths of hair and she drew a breath of longing.   
_My chest isn't tight anymore.  
  
__Do I really accept his apology? Kinda.  
  
_ The Took side of her flared to life  _but he's not getting off that easy. He's going to work to convince me to go back with him.  
  
_ Thorin was sitting in the arm chair beside her and offered her a small smile as she rose to standing.   
"Ahem."   
The others just bickering and now Dori was gesturing violently towards her yet they didn't realize she was upright.   
"Alright, stop fighting."   
They just kept going! She looked to see Thorin smirking as he reached into a leather satchel by his feet.   
"Here." and wouldn't it beat all that he handed her the prettiest skillet she'd seen. It was undeniably sturdy and had a good heft to it yet it wasn't too heavy for her nor did it feel like it would dent easy. It had actually had some engraving down of vines down the handle and there in the center of the pan was engraved the words " _common sense."_    
"Thank you!" she beamed at him before making her way to the arguing bunch of idiots.   
The Baggins side insisted she try manners one more time before it would be quiet and let Took side rule.   
"Excuse me! Don't I get a say?"   
The only one that seemed to notice her was Ori and his brown eyes grew wide at the sight of the frying pan in her hands and he quickly stepped back followed by Nori because their Mam didn't raise fools except maybe Dori. Their silver haired brother was too busy demanding Dwalin shave his head amongst other physically impossible things while Dwalin was trying to take it graciously but he drew the line at being told to go fuck himself. Bluebell hadn't even thought her fussy proper brother knew those words and yet here he was spouting them away like he'd been the one called a whore.   
_But that was a cultural difference_ spoke the small voice of reason that sounded like Ori.   
"You need to crawl back under whatever anvil Thorin dragged you out of and leave our sister in peace! She's dying because of you and the least you could do is let her do that in peace!" roared Dori.   
"Honestly you'd think you'd want him to save me, wouldn't you?" she tried one more time only for Dori to shush her with his hand!  
_Oh that is it!  
  
__I am tired of people not listening to me!  
  
_ Dori didn't know what hit him when she whipped the skillet at his head dropping him like a stone when it connected with his temple.   
"Dori!" Bofur cried dropping check and make sure he was still alive.   
"Please," she snorted "It'll take more than that to kill that clot headed fussbudget. Ah Thank you!" Ori had retrieved the skillet for since trying to reach anything from the floor was a feat and a half.   
"Now." she pointed it at Bofur and Dwalin "Anyone else care to shush me or not listen to me?"   
Bofur shook his head so fast it looked like his floppy hat was trying to fly while Dwalin once again got on one knee in front of her. " **Thutrel** , I am so sorry for giving you such a fright that you fainted. If you wish to hit me I more than deserve it."   
_This isn't Dwalin; this is someone posing as my Cariad.  
  
What is wrong with him?   
  
My Dwalin would never be willing to rollover like this.  
  
_ "Get up. I don't know what this" she motioned at his whole being with the skillet "But this not my _Cariad_." she looked at Thorin "Fix this. Now if you'll excuse me I find that I am starving."   
Ori was beside her in a flash "Really? You're hungry? That's fantastic!" his face was flushed with happiness as he ushered her from the room and towards the kitchens.   
  
Dwalin looked at Thorin who looked like he was getting a headache and then to Nori who was smirking. "What's so funny, thief?"  
"Bluebell is back." was the only answer the trihaired dwarf gave him before sauntering from the room.   
Bofur was still in the floor with Dori since he couldn't lift the much heavier dwarf and he was looking up at Dwalin shaking his hatted head.   
"What, Toy maker? Do you know what she's talking about?"   
Bofur twirled one side of his mustache while he considered answering the big dwarf "Aye I know what she's referring to but I dunno if I care to tell you, ya giant jackass."   
That brought a strangled sound from Thorin's seat figure and when he drew around to face him, he found that Thorin was laughing!   
"What's so funny?" he growled.   
"You've managed to piss off one of literally nicest dwarves and you can't figure out what Bluebell is talking about." the King choked out.   
He threw them all a rude hand sign before stomping from the library in search of the poncy treeshagger that had promised them rooms.   
  
"He really is thick someday's isn't he?" wondered Bofur out loud.   
"Oh yes and stubborn as a mule so it'll take even longer for him to admit he is being thick." answered Thorin.   
"But we don't have that much time. Bluebell's due date is drawing near. We've got like 2 month according to the elves here." he informed the monarch from his spot on the floor.   
"Well than we're going to have to give them some help."   
"Hurray." groaned Dori from Bofur's lap.   
  
  
Bluebell couldn't remember the last time food had tasted this good as she inhaled the dishes that elves were more than happy to supply her while she chatted with Ori about the stupidity of males though she made sure to tell him he wasn't included with them. He just hummed in response as he wrote or whatever he did in that journal of his while she griped after her 3rd helping of vegetable stew.   
"So what is it that you don't like about Dwalin's new attitude?"   
She scowled at the scone she was slathering with butter as though it was offending her by not melting fast enough "He's not the dwarf I fell in love with. He used to be gruff but kind now he's almost pathetic in how down trodden he acts. I used to look at him and think that he had a spine of steel that apologized for nothing and now I think he has a spine of custard and all he does is apologize." she held up a hand to stop Ori's protest about her deserving an apology of epic proportions. "Actions speak louder than words while obviously his verbal apology has done wonders for restoring me from fading Hobbits are all about action. Our courting is all walks together and flowers and cooking for each other. Dwalin didn't court me in either of our cultures and I was a lonely fool for giving myself to him with no sign of commitment. I know he pledged himself to me before I went to find Smaug but I think the gold-sickness was already beginning to affect everyone so I'm not sure how much of it he meant and how much was just him growing possessive. Neither of us has handled things well and while he's my _Cariad_ I really don't know where we stand with each other."   
_Yes you do_ her treacherous heart whispered  _you love him as much now as you did in that garden.  
  
__But look where it got me. I'm fading even now though I feel better now that I have in months that doesn't change the fact that I'm unbound and pregnant. Quite the scandal back home, I would be an embarrassment to the Baggins name .  
  
But he came for you and cut off his beard. You know what hair means to them_ it retorted.  
   
She looked up from her rambling to see Ori staring at her slack jawed, quill poised in midair dripping ink on his pant leg.   
What she didn't see was the bald warrior that was behind her that turned and left the kitchen while the elves looked on.   
  
  
The truth burned as much as the tears that were threatening behind his eyes as he looked for a way outside so he could think under the sky and not in a weed eater's palace.   
_He didn't court me in either of our cultures.  
  
_ He grimaced at that.  _No he hadn't and when he had tried the dwarrow way he'd driven her away with a misunderstanding.  
  
He has a spine of custard now.   
  
Pathetic in how down trodden he acts.   
  
Actions speak louder than words.   
  
  
_ He found the young scribe alone in the library the next day reading some ancient tome probably about how to build a house for giant spiders.   
"Can I have a word, lad?"   
Ori studied him for a minute before marking his page and nodding.   
"What do you know of the language of flowers?"   
The younger dwarf's eyes grew large and he smiled at him for the first time in months "What do you want to know?"   
  
Bluebell was surprised to find a bouquet of flowers waiting for her outside her door the next morning and couldn't help the soft smile that lit her face as she recognized the runes stitched on the ribbon as the mark of a certain son of Fundin. The bouquet help Amaranth for unfading love, Almond Blossom for hope, a white Camelia telling her "You're adorable loveliness, Gloxinia for love at first sight which made her blush, and a purple Hyacinth asking for forgiveness. A note was attached inviting the lass to a picnic for lunch and that he would be by to pick up right before hand.   
She was buzzing with excitement the entire morning and could barely sit still while having tea with Dori who forgave her right away for hitting him in the head.   
As it crept closer to lunch she looked in the mirror and despaired at her reflection staring back.  
Her face was almost gaunt with her cheek bones being very prominent, and she had only regained a touch of the roses that used to bloom on her cheeks, her hair was a unruly halo of curls that she was unsure how to tame and then she discovered that the vest and skirt she had been planning on wearing wouldn't fit around her swollen bosom and middle.   
She couldn't even get the damn buttons close enough to force it!   
She promptly sat down and burst into tears.   
And that was how Bofur found her; sitting there half-dressed crying on her bed.  
  
He was pretty sure one of these days she was going to do him in with a heart attack or that his braids were going to be stock white in a year's time.   
Bofur had been passing by her door on the way to Dori's room when a low sound caught his hearing, as he crept towards her door he thought his heart had stopped when it was her crying.   
His tongue seemed to stick to the roof of his mouth as she looked at him with tears trickling down her cheeks.  
"Oh Bofur, I'm fat!" she sobbed.   
You could have knocked him down with a feather right there as he tried to keep the smile from his lips. He learned with Bombur's wife that it's not polite to laugh at a crying female ESPECIALLY a pregnant crying female no matter how ridiculous the thing they were crying over was.  
He spotted Nori strolling up the hall and grabbed the star haired dwarf before he could duck away and bodily tossed him into the room.  
"Wha?"   
" **She's crying cause she thinks she's fat."** he signed at the middle Ri quickly.   
Nori's braided brows shot up " **She's pregnant! What am I supposed to do about that?"  
"Help her find something to wear."   
"You're joking."   
** Bofur just shot him a smirk before shutting the door effectively blocking all escape routes.  
  
  
_He will pay for this.  
  
  
_ Dwalin was feeling pretty pleased with himself as he strolled towards Bluebell's room with his thumbs hooked in his belt.   
"GET OUT!"   
That shriek seemed to echo down the hall and the door to his destination swung open as Nori darted out only for it slam shut behind the frazzled looking dwarf.   
One of his eyebrow braids was undone and it looked as though he might have a black eye blooming.   
"What the hell happened to you?"   
For the first time he could remember the spy looked uncomfortable and was blushing!   
"I might have agreed to something I shouldn't have. I need to go get Dori. Umm Bluebell is going to be a mite late for your picnic date." with that he darted down the hall like his life depended on it.   
_Durin's beard what is going on?  
  
  
_ Dori had been enjoying feeding finger foods to a naked Bofur when Nori unceremoniously burst into his room, immediately spinning to face the wall at the sight of their undress.  
"Whoa! I'm sorry but we have a situation that I need your help with."   
Dori crossed his arms across his barrel chest and scowled at his younger brother "I thought I had told you all that I was to be left alone till dinnertime."  
As his brother nodded that he had Dori noticed that his braids were almost unraveled in spots and his normally smooth hair style was distinctly fuzzed.   
"What in Mahal's name happened to you?"   
"Ahem that would be Bluebell's fault."   
"How could that sweet little lass be at fault? She was in no state to do anything like that when I saw her." laughed Bofur from where he was reclined on the bed.   
He watched Nori's spine stiffen before he whirled around and pointed a blunt finger at the toy maker "This!" he pointed at his purpling eye "Is your fault!"  
Irritation at being interrupted vanished as he focused on Nori's black eye and taking in the rest of his rumpled state.   
Bofur jumped from the bed keeping a pillow over his groin "How is that my fault? I didn't hit you!"   
"No, you just tossed me into a room with an emotional pregnant female so you apparently could come debauch my brother!" Nori shook an accusatory finger at them.   
"I thought you could handle her! She was doing nothing but crying when I left!" shouted the nude miner.   
Dori felt his head begin to spin with their arguing "Wait a minute! Bluebell did this to you?"   
Nori nodded while trying to burn Bofur's chest hair off with his glare.   
"And you tossed him, my brother, a dwarf who has never been around hormonal females and only holds marginally more knowledge of the fairer sex than Ori into a room with our pregnant crying sister?" he fixed his partner with what Ori called his "I'll kill you if you lie" look.   
Bofur seemed to wilt between the looks he was getting from the brothers before throwing his hands up "Alright! I did it! I thought he could handle her. She was just crying that she was fat and I _really_ wanted to come see you. I thought he could handle it! How was I to know he had the emotional range of a teaspoon?!"  
"THAT'S IT I'M BLIND!" cried Nori clapping his hands over his eyes after seeing his brother's lover nude.   
  
  
Dwalin thunked his head against the wall before deciding that Bluebell must not want to see him. It had been hours since a huffy Dori had entered her room trailed by Nori and Bofur. Neither had spared him a passing glance ad they had gone through the portal and it had rankled him a bit to be honest.   
_I'm done with this.Clearly she had no intention of spending the afternoon with me.  
  
_ He stood and began down the hall towards his room not wanting to admit that his heart hurt with each step he took.   
"Am I too late?" came a lilting voice from behind him that stopped him in his tracks.   
  
She smiled shyly up at him as she brushed a honey curl behind her ear while looking up at him through her lashes.   
"N... no you're not." and he offered her his arm to which he was surprised when she accepted.   
They walked in silence through the carved halls and he kept stealing glances at her to make sure she was actually there. She seemed to glow walking there next to him and he kept waiting for her to shimmer away, a figment of his imagination.   
She was thinner than he remembered and guilt at him with the knowledge that it was his fault. Even with the obvious weight loss her belly must have doubled in size since he had held it in his hands. The knowledge that his child grew under the heart he had broken settled like a stone in his stomach.   
He felt more than heard her gasp as they stepped onto the terrace outside the library where he'd had Thorin help him set up a picnic for them.   
  
  
The setup before her looked like something straight from one of her daydreams with the setting sun in the background and candles placed along the railing with a blanket spread out on the ground. There were even pillows to one side with a single red rose for her. There was food in the hamper and he had lemonade for them to drink and she was surprised that none of the food was dried out considering how much time she had wasted.   
He helped her down to the cushions before claiming a spot across from her.   
They made small talk about useless this and that while he fixed her plate with the joke that "at least these elves eat meat compared to Rivendell's leaf-eaters."  
She hadn't the heart to tell him that Lord Elrond's people were just screwing with the dwarves and that they actually ate meat too.   
She studied him as she dug into the sandwich he gave her.   
He looked aged and so different with the now trimmed sparse whiskers on his chin and upper lip.   
"What is there something on my face?" he rubbed along his naked face with a grimace.   
She shook her head as she swallowed her mouthful "No, you just look different."   
He gave her a rueful smile "Aye you took quite a few years off my life with that stunt you pulled."   
She stopped with her glass half way to her lips "Excuse me?"   
  
He knew he shouldn't have said it the minute it left his mouth.   
_Remember to think before you speak. Say it in your head before you spew it_ Balin's voice reminded him.   
  
He watched her ears lay back and she looked him with narrowed eyes.   
"Ya know what with you running off with that skin changer and all." his voice trailed off weakly as a growl seemed to come from the dainty Hobbit and before he could blink the lemonade she had held was all over his face.  
  
{"Can't your children do anything right?" Yavanna asked her husband as they watched the bald warrior wipe lemonade from his eyes.   
Mahal didn't answer the pointless question as he glowered at the child in question.   
"I know they don't have many females but how can he be so inept?" asked Nessa popping up far out of reach of her brother.   
"It must be from the overabundance of testosterone." Varda surmised watching Mahal's glare turn darker.}  
  
Bluebell was pissed off, hungry, her hips were aching and she had to pee. Again!   
_To think I was upset about not fitting into my clothes for that Clot head!  
  
__Why did I think that would go well?  
  
_ "Bluebell! Bluebell, wait!"   
"Leave me alone, Dwalin."   
A big hand closed around her upper arm and she lashed out without a second thought. The hand left and she sped down the hall as fast she could.  
  
Dwalin dropped to his knees as her fist connected with his testicles and let out a pained wheeze as he watched her rush down the hall.   
_I shouldn't have done that._  
  
_Oh sweet Mahal I think she's ended my line._  
  
_I'm going to throw up.  
  
_ {"I swear if he could just stop talking things would be mended between them in no time." mused Yavanna watching the dwarf stagger down the hall.   
"I seriously think he doesn't think before he speaks." agreed Nessa twirling around the group.   
"Actions speak louder than words for everyone but him it seems." stated Varda.   
"His words undo his actions faster than he can act!" laughed Tulkas slapping his thigh.   
Mahal was staring intently at where the bald dwarf laid in the floor of his room and all the noise seemed to go to the background.  _Actions speak louder than words. His words are the problem.  
_ "What is it dear?" Yavanna was looking up at him, brows drawn in concern.   
"You've been doing all the punishing lately, my flower and my child just doesn't seem to be getting the whole message. I think I've figured out a way to punish him for his words."   
Her pink mouth a perfect tiny "o" as her green eyes widened at the toothy smile he had as he leaned over the cauldron and extended his hand towards the dwarf.}   
  
  
Bluebell was shaking as she entered Nori's room without knocking, startling her brother as he jumped from the bed with a dagger drawn. He dropped it and rushed over to where she stood.   
"Bluebell, what happened?" he ran his hands over her checking for invisible injuries.   
"Dwalin is a complete and utter weed eating jackass." she bit out as she began pacing.   
She heard the sound of flesh meeting flesh and knew that Nori had just face palmed "What did he do?"   
She started pacing and rubbing the underside of her belly where the baby felt to be sitting funny as it pulled.   
"He started going on about the 'stunt' I pulled by leaving with Beorn and you lot. Claiming I took years off his life like this has all been so damn easy on me!"  
Nori growled at that knowing she had been suffering in silence about the pain her heart was in.   
"He was acting like I did this to inconvenience him, like I wanted this to be how things were! I want to be pregnant thousands of miles from the shire. That I wanted to be throttled and almost killed half a dozen times for his dumb ass. That traveling all over Arda while pregnant was on my to do list."  
The pulling was growing and starting to hurt but she didn't register is right away with her ranting. "Oh yes and its every Hobbit's dream to have their One calls them a whore and denies the child they made. Sweet Yavanna!"   
She grabbed the back of the couch and hissed at the cramp increased intensity.   
  
  
Nori hadn't realized she'd stopped ranting till he heard her pained hiss.   
"Whoa, what's wrong?" he looped her arm over his shoulder.   
"I...I don't know but it hurts!" she whined.   
"Right. Alright let's get you to the Hall of Healing and then I'll get Dori."   
Panic at the edge of him but he wasn't a Master Thief for nothing as he lifted Bluebell up into his arms and walked as quickly as possible down the hall kicking Ori and Dori's door on the way.   


Ori was conflicted.   
He wanted to be there for Bluebell but he also thought in a way that Dwalin should know since it concerned the baby. Dori said it was none of his business since he disputed the baby even being his but it ate at Ori's conscious. He like the Guard Captain despite how things were going with his sister.  
The bigger dwarf just couldn't control his mouth is all.   
He decided the best middle ground would be to tell Thorin and let Thorin decide. He knew that was almost cowardly but at least this way he could honestly tell Dori that he hadn't told Dwalin.   
Thorin opened the door looking sleep rumpled and would have been attractive if Ori wasn't terrified of him.   
"Bluebell has been taken to the Healers and I thought you'd like to know."   
Thorin nodded his thanks and shut the door. That was when Ori realized the King had been barefoot and topless.   
He fanned himself as he sprinted down the hall to follow his family.   
  
  
Bluebell watched as Nerissa pressed here and there on her belly and hummed.   
"What is it? Is she in labor?" Dori fairly bounced with nerves as Bluebell squeezed his hand. The pains had stopped a little while after arriving thanks to Nori's short cuts and speed walking.   
The elleth fixed her brother with a look that made him stop bouncing and blush a little.  
"I think it was just some practice contractions. Everything feels fine to me and the little one is quite happy in there." she smiled at Bluebell "Quite the acrobat in there."   
As though it knew they were talking about it the baby rolled and made her whole belly shift, and she couldn't resist laughing.   
"Since there is laughing I assume everything is alright?" Thorin's deep voice rolled through the room as he came to the foot of her bed.   
"Yes. Just some practice contractions."   
Thorin nodded "My sister had those while pregnant with the boys but she said they were almost painless."   
"Yes they are supposed to be painless according to our mother."   
She fixed them both with a pointed look "No womb, no opinion."  
The healer quickly turned to hide her laughter at the offended looks the dwarves were giving her little patient.   
Thorin rolled his ice blue eyes and patted her foot "I'm relieved to hear that you and the little pebble are alright, Bluebell."   
  
  
Dwalin woke the next morning feeling like his tongue was wrapped in wool and the friction of his pants on his bruised testicles made him seriously consider never walking again.   
He groaned as he sat up and immediately started coughing until he staggered into the bathroom to gulp greedily from the faucet.   
"So you are alive." came Thorin's unamused rumble from behind him.   
He sent him a rude hand gesture as he washed his face and drank more water trying to get rid of the queer feeling in his throat.   
"You must have been tighter than a boiled owl last night considering you didn't answer your door when I knocked."   
He shook him head and opened his mouth to reply when no sound would come out.   
Thorin just scowled at him "Well I'll have you know that Bluebell is fine even if you were too drunk to come see for yourself."   
_Mahal's beard did I hurt her?  
  
_ He cleared his throat and was surprised when even that made no noise and looked at Thorin in alarm only to see his best friend looking at him disgusted.   
"Honestly how could your date have gone so badly you needed to get drunk? So drunk in fact that you couldn't be roused not once but twice to be informed that your pregnant One was taken to the Healing Hall." Thorin ground out at him, his silence obviously pissing the King off.   
_Why can't I talk?_  
  
He waved a hand at Thorin trying to convey the loss of his voice but he was too incensed to notice "Ya know I keep defending you and then you turn around and pull a stunt like this. Do you just not care? Do you really not want her?:  
He was trying to make words come out when he remembered Inglishmek and started to throw signs at his friend.   
"Oh save it! You know you really deserve to punched in the face by someone." Thorin turned to leave and then spun back around "Everyone else has gotten to hit you, what the hell."   
Dwalin was too busy trying to sign to stop the fist that was flying towards his face and damn did Thorin have an avalanche of a right hook.   
The next thing he saw was his friend's retreating back as he tried to pick himself up from the floor.   
He studied his face in the polished silver mirror, grimacing where his jaw ached from Thorin rock-like fist.   
_Mahal what have I done to deserve this?  
  
_ Fog began to billow in his mirror obscuring his face and he rubbed his eyes thinking he was seeing things. When he opened them the face of Mahal had replaced his own and he gripped the sink so hard the granite basin groaned under his hands.   
"Dwalin, son of Fundin, you are being punished for your treatment of your **Khebabmudtu**." the Valar's voice boomed. "You will not get your voice back until you can prove you deserve Bluebell Baggins and have apologized to the satisfaction of not only Bluebell but my wife. If you will never enter my halls to await the second song and you shall never find your One again."   
  
_Fuck me._

 


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dwalin thinks he can get his voice back some other way until someone knocks some sense into him.  
> Ori is just wanting to help.  
> Time is slowly slipping by.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The comments and kudos is positively is mind blowing. I can't thank y'all enough. 
> 
> Hubma rakit~ Ass hole (lit. bottom hollow)
> 
>  
> 
> Sindarin  
> Yrchs~ Orcs

**You will not get your voice back until Bluebell forgives you and more so my wife forgives you.  
  
****If you fail you will never enter my halls to await the 2nd song and you will never find your One again.  
  
_If I fail Bluebell will die.  
  
_**_Surely I can get my voice back first and then get Bluebell's forgiveness.  
  
_ Dwalin tried teas, heat right on his throat, gargling nasty salt water, steaming himself like a prawn in his bath until he was a red as Gloin's beard but he still couldn't produce a single sound from his throat.  
He wasn't even able to hum anymore!  
  
{"Why is he fighting this so much? He should know not to try and argue with his creator." Nessa turned questioning eyes up at Mahal.   
"Dwarves are nothing if not stubborn my dear." he chuckled while they watch Dwalin try some sort of throat massage before throwing the bowl of water across the bathroom.   
"Well you did make them from stone. Why couldn't you pick some more malleable?" Yavanna asked.   
"I thought stone was a fine medium." he groused.   
Yavanna snorted lovingly "Sunshine, growing things and clay are fine mediums. I think you just wanted to make the most stubborn race Arda had ever seen."   
"Have you met the race of Men?" giggle Varda from behind her hand as a deep chuckle filled the air; it seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.}  
  
  
He paced the length of his room rubbing his bald head trying to come up with another option than trying to tell the elves what was wrong and in doing so he'd have to tell one of the other dwarves since elves wouldn't understand his hand signs.   
_Who would I even tell?  
  
__I'd rather fall on my own ax than go to Dori.  
  
__Ori would probably involve his brothers.  
  
__Nori would just laugh at me.  
  
__I don't think Thorin would be much help either with how he feels about my actions right now.  
  
__That just leaves Bofur.  
_  
_Fuck me running.  
  
  
_ A soft knock halted his pacing and pulled his attention outward.   
_Who could be visiting me?  
  
Haven't I pissed everyone off?   
  
_ He pulled the heavy door open with a black look on his face that immediately ran into surprise at Bluebell standing on the otherside looking anxious.  
"Am I interrupting something?" She asked looking up at him with those big green eyes that seemed to hold a hint of hope. Whether it was hope that he was busy or that he wasn't he couldn't tell.   
He didn't even venture down the path that she was hopefully that he was happy to see her or hopefully that this meeting would go better than the last.   
  
He opened his mouth to answer only to remember  _oh yeah no voice.  
_ He smiled at her and shook his head as he stepped back opening the door wider for her. She gave him a small smile as she walked past him and the scent of her seemed to wrap around his head. He hadn't smelled her in so long that it was intoxicating; she smelled of something sweet, slightly floral but now also of growing things and then her underlying muskiness.   
She was staring at him with her hands folded on top of her belly with a knowing smile on her lips.   
He parted his lips to ask her what brought her and instead morphed it in to returning her smile and gestured for her to take a seat on the couch facing the fireplace.    
  
She perched on the far end and smoothed her dress over her belly before turning her gaze back to him. He wanted to ask her if she was alright, if there was something wrong, why had she stopped by, how was the baby, anything but the memory of Mahal's words echoed through his mind and all her could do was sit there returning her kind gaze with what he hoped was a sincere,and understanding one of his own.  
She blushed delicately before averting her eyes to the fire that was crackling merrily as it consumed the logs in the grate.   
"I- I wanted to apologize for striking you." she spoke so softly he almost didn't hear her.   
When he didn't make a sound she cleared her throat and continued "It was wrong of me to strike you in anger but I do not handle being touched unaware very well anymore."  
He flinched at that and her ears twitched almost like she could hear his guilty feelings.   
"I hope I haven't damaged you permanently... like I am." she whispered the last part and then ducked her head as if she was expecting an outburst.   
His heart ached and he desperately wanted to tell her how sorry he was before her words echoed Mahal's  _Actions speak louder than words.  
  
_ So he reached out and touched her small hand, and when she looked at him he just shook his head. The look of surprise was not something he had been expecting nor was he prepared for her to scoot back on the couch.   
"I'm sure Thorin has been by to see you." she stated tucking a honeyed back with the rest from its spot on her forehead.   
He nodded and leaned forward.   
"I'm- well we both are fine." she patted the round curve of her bump "it was just some practice contractions. From what I understand it's all very normal, it just didn't feel normal to me." she chuckled.   
  
Bluebell looked up to catch Dwalin staring at her abdomen with an almost hungry expression on his face but it wasn't one that made her uncomfortable. She looked down to where their hands were still stacked on the cushion next to her and weighed what she wanted to do next.   
"Nerissa," Dwalin raised his eyebrows at the elf's name.  
"She's the midwife I've been seeing since Thranduil isn't here. Well the closest thing they have to a midwife considering Legolas was the last baby born here and he's over 2000 years old."   
Dwalin snorted and smiled at her. She felt something small and warm open in her chest where it had been so cold and silent for so long. The baby seemed to sense her feelings and made its self-known as a little appendage protruded along the slope of her belly before the entire thing jumped.   
Dwalin actually looked scared and jumped to his feet; silver eyes glued to her belly like he was expecting it to explode. This big warrior looking so freaked out struck as so ridiculous she felt laughter burble up in her like water welling up from a long dried spring.   
It felt good to laugh and she couldn't seem to stop as his expression shifted from panicked to embarrassed and he actually blushed all the way to his tattooed scalp.   
  
{"I hate to admit it but I think you made a good decision." smiled Yavanna pressing a kiss to Mahal's cheek causing the Smith to blush crimson as their siblings giggled.   
"I forgot that dwarrowdam's hide their pregnancies so I don't think Dwalin has hardly any knowledge of pregnancy aside from he might have picked up when Dis was expecting. And that was 80 years ago!" laughed Varda.   
"HE better learn in a hurry then!" giggled Nessa from where she skipped over the daisies.   
"I must say he is handling this better than I expected." surveyed Manwe.   
"I think he's about to get some hands on experience with pregnant females." smiled Vaire as they gathered around the cauldron.}   
  
Dwalin _knew_ that babies moved in the womb. He remembered Dis complaining loudly about how Kili kept her from sleeping most nights until she took to sleeping with Thorin. But he had never _seen_ anything like _that_.   
Bluebell's laughter had been worth the embarrassment and he'd never forget how she seemed to glow in merriment as he stared down at her.   
"Here." she patted the cushion next to her for him to sit next to her and he did so hesitantly.   
Her hand was warm as she wrapped it around his larger one and it seemed like her touch tingled all the way up his arm to his chest. It took everything in him not to jerk his hand away as she placed it on the side of her swollen midsection. She just giggled and gave his hand a squeeze.   
Quicksilver met jade green as their hands laid intertwined over where their child grew and he felt himself grow hot, almost feverish as emotions swamped him of the magnitude of the pain he had caused her.  
_How she can stand me touching her after everything I've done?  
  
__If I had my voice I'd be apologizing so much that she would probably hit me with her skillet again.  
  
**Actions speak louder than words.  
  
   
** I will make_ _things right._    
Time slipped by as they sat there and Bluebell frowned down at the bump that housed their offspring.   
"Must like your touch. Normally once she gets moving it takes forever for her to settle down." she beamed at him and he felt his face grow even hotter.   
_She?  
  
_ He gave her a questioning look and she shrugged "Balin seems to think the babe is a girl and I quite like the idea of having a daughter... Even it's just for a short time."   
He felt those words all the way into his soul and it hurt like nothing he had ever experienced. He tried to say something, anything to give Bluebell a sign that he was sorry.   
A low hum vibrated in his throat and he was so happy for that sound he wanted to cry.   
As if it felt that sound in its small home the baby decided to do what he assumed was a kick near his hand and Bluebell laughed. "She must like your voice."   
  
{"Very nice dear." Yavanna whispered rising to kiss his cheek.  
Mahal blushed all the way to the root of his hair as the others chimed "Awwwww."}  
  
  
She thought her heart stopped at the look of wonder on his face and it took every part of her being to not card her hand through his wild black hair as he hummed to the life inside her. She missed the first notes while she was studying the face she had so missed but felt her heart skip a beat as she picked up the notes to the song he had sung in her smial all those months ago.   
The fire light glinted off his ear cuffs and her mind skipped back to the ones he had fashioned her. The question burned in her but she didn't want to ruin the moment as he hummed to their child. The song had changed to one she had never heard before but found she liked the melody as it flowed from his throat.   
  
Eventually the little one quieted seeming to settle in Dwalin's other hand and he stopped humming. The slight weight in his hand was something he had never expected to feel and now he never wanted to forget it.   
  
A resounding knock broke the spell and he jerked his hand back as though it burned him before giving Bluebell a guilty smile before standing. He offered her a hand and she gladly accepted the help to her feet.   
_I want to thank her but how when I can't speak!  
  
__Manners. Remember those manners Balin drilled into your head.  
  
_ He pulled Bluebell's hand up and placed a gentle kiss on the back of it that made the pretty lass blush to the tips of her ears.   
  
To say Thorin was open mouthed surprised when Bluebell opened the door to Dwalin's room, blushing prettily before biding them both good bye.   
"What did you?"   
Dwalin looked almost as nonplussed as he felt as he held his hands up to sign  **"I listened to** **her.** "   
He couldn't help his snort of derision "Yeah right. What did you really do."  
Dwalin shot him a dark look " **I've lost my voice."**    
He couldn't help the bark of laughter that escaped him as Dwalin threw a cup at him before opening his mouth. He was pretty sure that what his friend said was not kind in the slightest but absolutely no sound left him as his lips formed the words.   
"Well I'll be damned. The first good interaction you've had with her in months and its all because you've been struck with laryngitis."   
Dwalin shook his bald head.  
Thorin cocked his head to the side "What do you mean? It's not laryngitis? Then what the hell is wrong with you?"   
Dwalin pointed a thick finger skyward and made the sign of the Smith.   
His eyes bugged "Mahal took your voice? Be serious."   
Dwalin stomped so hard the end table next to him jumped " **I am serious! Mahal has taken my voice for my actions against my Khebabmudtu and I will not get it back until Bluebell and Yavanna forgive me! If I fail I will not be allowed entrance to His halls when I die to await the 2nd song. I will also never find my One again."  
** "What does Yavanna have to do with this?"   
Dwalin rolled his eyes  **"She created the Hobbits."  
** "How long do you have?"   
**"Until the child is born. Bluebell is dying and all that is sustaining her right now is her keeping it together for the baby. Once it is born she will fade."  
** "Durin's Beard that doesn't give you much time. Think you can do it?"   
Dwalin grimaced  **"I cannot fail."  
  
  
** Bluebell didn't notice the odd looks her brothers gave her as she fairly floated into the room, she was too busy thinking about what a lovely visit it had been. But something had seemed off about Dwalin, she just couldn't put her finger on what it was.   
"Hello? Bluebell. are you in there?"   
Her eyes focused on a worried looking Ori and smiled "I'm sorry _**Nadad**_. Bit lost in my own thoughts but it's nothing. What is it?"   
"Dori was offering you lunch." Ori was looking at her like he didn't quite believe her but thought better than to argue.   
"Oh food!"   
The brothers shared a look over her blond head and Nori silently slipped from the room.   
  
  
" Sir I think we have a impending problem."   
"What is it?" Legolas looked up from his missives to study the guard captain that was shifting in front of him.   
"It's the spiders. They are behaving oddly."  
"What is normal for a giant spider?" he asked smirking at the flushed guard.   
"They aren't attacking anymore."   
"So? The White Council took care of the taint that spawned them." he switched to Westron just to irritate the guard.   
"They seem to be drawing back but we can't tell to where. And the others have mentioned hearing whispers from them."   
Now that caught his attention "They can't talk. They're giant arachnids."  
"Tauriel swears she's heard whispering from the Valar forsaken things. Something about an attack."   
"And why isn't she here telling me instead of you?" he arched a brow at the shifty looking elf.   
"I had to shower off spider blood, Mellon." drawled a very feminine voice from the door as a red headed elf entered his study.   
He gestured for his oldest friend to sit and dismissed the other with a wave of his hand.   
"You should really be nicer to him, Maer is a good soldier." she chided him and he pulled a face at her.   
"Now," he leaned back in his chair stretching till his spine popped "what is this nonsense about talking spiders?"   
A frown darkened her fair features as she answered him "I know that I heard one of the spiders growl something about 'vengeance' and a coming attack. I ended it's life before it crossed my mind to try and just cripple it. I thought I was hearing things until another one said the same thing as I brought my sword down."   
_That does not sound good.  
  
Where is Ada when I could actually use his help?  
  
_ "Let's keep this between us for now. I don't want the dwarves or Bluebell to panic. See if the other hunting parties have heard anything."   
She nodded and strode from the room as he went back to reading the letter from his father.   
Neither noticed the pointed red hair that disappeared from the plant on the balcony.   
  
  
_Giant spiders vowing revenge and an attack.  
  
Honestly who thinks up this stuff?  
  
Could only happen to these bloody elves.   
  
_ Nori wore a black glower as he explored parts of the palace that he actually had wished to forget but he needed to know all the ways out of this Valar damned palace if there was a chance of a Eru blessed _Spider attack.  
_ He'd cut off his braids marking him a Master Spy if he couldn't protect his family from a bunch of 8 legged demon spawn.   
  
He now knows why Bluebell was so testy with them when they had hounded her to find a way out for them before. Because there really aren't any aside from the upper ones which he was sure those nasty beasties would make sure to block immediately.   
The trap door for the barrels was the only true exit he could find aside from some little windows that Ori would have a hard time fitting through not counting the rest of them or his largely pregnant sister.   
The idea of Bluebell being trapped anywhere near the stingers of those nasty buggers made bile rise in his throat.   
  
He jiggled the lever for the trap door and then eyeballed the barrels currently sitting there.   
_There is no way in Mahal's forge Bluebell is going to fit in one of those.  
  
__Time to build a better barrel for just in case these leaf eaters can't handle a bug problem.  
  
  
_ "You know what I miss, **Nadad**?" Bluebell asked Dori as he was wrist deep in her curls.  
"What is that, **Mizim**?"   
"Baking, I miss baking pies and sweets like I did back in Bag End." she answered humming a familiar tune while rubbing her midsection.   
He finished off her braid and secured it with a bead marking her as a Ri "I haven't heard that song in many moons."   
"Dwalin was humming it to the baby yesterday."   
Her response trickled down his spine like ice water "You saw Dwalin yesterday? Why didn't you say anything?"   
She shrugged "I went to apologize for hitting him in the stones and then I told him of the trip to the midwife. Somehow we ended up on the couch with him humming to the baby. It was nice. Only odd thing was he didn't talk at all."   
Dori cocked his silver head to the side  _Dwalin not talk? That doesn't sound like the gossip-monger._    
He caught Bofur's eye on the opposite couch  **Can you go see what is going on with Dwalin? This doesn't sound right.  
** His One nodded and slipped from the room as Bluebell told him about what she wanted to bake and lamented that they didn't have access to a kitchen.   
"I think Legolas could be persuaded to turn over the kitchens here for your use. But we'll be with you. I don't want you to overdo it."   
"You worry too much, **Nadadel**." she patted his hand on her shoulder.   
He let out a dry laugh "Where you and the little gem are concerned I do not worry enough."   
  
  
  
Bluebell was wrist deep in pie crust dough and was happier than a little pig in a mud puddle. She had cookie dough chilling, pie filling waiting to be poured and two chocolate cakes in the oven. One for Bofur and one for Legolas who she discovered has quite the sweet tooth for chocolate. All it took was the promise of cake all his own and the kitchen was hers. The elves that worked there hadn't left as they were quite curious about what the little being was going to craft plus her being with child made it even more fascinating. They were all ready to offer their assistance which Dori immediately dismissed as he and Ori helped her with everything. Nori was off doing Mahal knows and all Dori could hope was that he wasn't trying to rob the elves blind.   
Bluebell felt better today than she had the day before as she rolled out the crust for her first pie.   
She cut little flowers to decorate the edge and her mind skipped to the bouquet she had found outside her door this morning. She hadn't heard from Dwalin at all the day before which she found odd but the bouquet made up for it.   
The gorgeous blooms had been wrapped in green ribbon and held White Heather for wishes coming true, Forget-me-nots for enduring, true love, Agrimony saying Thank you with their little yellow blooms, Red and Yellow tulips shouting with their colors You're Everything to Me and There's Sunshine in Your Smile respectively, and Blue Violets say I love you.   
  
  
_For being such a big bastard Dwalin was hard to find when he wanted to be._ Bofur frowned as he peeked around corners hoping to catch the warrior unawares.   
He spotted Thorin on the terrace outside the dining room and he knew where the King was Dwalin wasn't far away.   
What sounded like a one sided conversation met his ears as he crept closer to them.   
"You really should just tell her."   
"She'll understand."  
"Do you honestly think she's that thick that she won't figure it out? You are running out of time!"   
"Oh don't give me that look. You know I'm right you stubborn jackass."   
A deep growl rolled from the terrace and Bofur couldn't stop his curiosity as he popped around the corner to see Dwalin's hands flying almost as fast as Bifur's could through sign as he appeared to be trying to glare Thorin to death. The raven haired King just laughed at him which made the glare all the darker.   
"Ah Bofur! How are you this fine afternoon?"   
_Fine afternoon? Its bloody raining again.  
  
_ He nodded "Fair enough. I was actually looking for Dwalin but it appears you're having a one sided argument."  
Thorin got a wicked gleam in his eye "Not at all! I was just telling Dwalin what a thick skulled, daisy munching idiot he was being. You can do that as well as I. Perhaps he'll listen to you better." And with that he walked away!  
  
Bofur and Dwalin eyed each other warily, the silence stretched between them thick like taffy until Bofur felt he was going to pop with questions.   
"So what have you done now that Thorin is pissed about? Not blowing him enough?" he knew it was cheeky but he just couldn't resist.   
A muscle jumped in the bald dwarfs cheek  **I am faithful to Bluebell. I don't lay with anyone.  
**_Good answer.  
  
_ "Then what? Thorin upset you found your One and don't put out anymore?"   
He thought he heard the sound of teeth creaking from the clench of Dwalin's jaw  **No.  
** "Is it because you were wrong about Bluebell being a whore? Was Thorin hoping for a taste?"   
Dwalin seemed to grow and Bofur had a moment of thinking he had pushed too far  **She is not a whore. I was wrong for sending her that as a gift. No one touches my Khebabmudtu.  
**That's when Bofur realized that Dwalin wasn't verbally answering him, he was signing everything!   
"Why aren't you speaking?"   
The tattooed dwarf seemed to deflate as he answered  **I cannot.  
** He cocked his head to the side "What do you mean you cannot? You mean you choose not to speak to me?"   
Dwalin started gesturing angrily while moving his lips but no sound was coming out  **I cannot speak you annoying weed brained hubma rakit!  
**"How in the bleeding 7 levels of hell did you lose your voice?"   
**Mahal  
  
  
** Dwalin stomped away from the howling miner before he pitched him off the terrace and into the garden some 12 feet below.   
_Even the Valar know you suck with words so they took your voice!  
  
_ He cringed at Bofur's observation and hated the fact the grinning fool was right.   
  
He stayed in his bad mood, eyes the color of thunderheads as he passed wide eyed elves and a stuttering Ori before stopped outside his door. There on the handle was a little basket that smelled of something sweet and a small note poked out.   
_Cariad,  
Thank you for the beautiful flowers and the lovely message they carried. I'm happy to see Ori isn't steering you wrong in your selection.  
(I forced him to tell me. Don't be cross with him.) I greatly enjoyed our visit the other day and was hoping you'd join me at dinner tonight.  
Love,  
__Bluebell.  
  
  
"What do you mean he has lost his_ _voice?"_  Dori hissed at Bofur while Ori wrung his hands.   
Bofur wiped tears of mirth from his eyes as he sobered under Dori scrutiny. _"That Valar have taken his voice! Even they know he sucks with words!"  
_ Ori sniggered behind his gloved hand and watched as Dori struggled to keep his composure.    
"But... but how will he get it back?" asked Ori while shooting a look as his sleeping sister's form.   
"He has to prove that he deserves her and gain not only hers but Yavanna's forgiveness for his actions."   
"What about the baby? She's not sure how long she has after it's born before she'll fade completely."   
"They've given him until it's born to save her. If he fails he'll lose her and never find her again, and he'll be denied entrance to Mahal's halls to await the second song." Thorin deep voice slid from the door way.   
Dori looked like he had bitten into something sour as the King's words held the ring of truth to them.   
"You lot need to learn to close doors." Thorin whispered as he stepped in and shut the door behind him.   
"I was in a hurry!" protested Bofur softly.   
"So now what?" Ori asked turning huge worried brown eyes to his elders.   
Dori scrubbed a hand across his whiskers "We help the idiot win her forgiveness and hopefully that of a goddess."   
  
  
Thorin found Dwalin pacing the length of his room like some kind of caged animal and knew that the great warrior was not used to being idle for so long.   
"Problems, **Murkhûn?"**  
**I am bored. My skin itches and I can't sit still.  
** "How about we go spar?"   
**Do you know where a training area is? H** is silver eyes held a hopeful glint.   
**Kun.  
  
** Thorin was quite pleased with himself for thinking to ask where they could train and he had the brother's Ri meet them there with Bofur bringing Bluebell after she awoke from her nap.   
  
  
The sounds of flesh hitting upon flesh and grunts of pain caught Bluebell's hearing before they even neared the clearing the elves had given the dwarrow to spar in. Bofur had refused to tell her where he was leading her; he just winked and patted her hand on his arm.   
She was surprised to find Dori and Ori grappling with each other until Ori actually flipped Dori to pin him! Dori looked surprised as she felt before he let out a whoop of laughter and pulled the younger dwarf down into a bear hug.   
"Our turn!" came Thorin's deep voice as he strutted into the area in only a light tunic and barefoot! Bluebell wasn't sure she'd ever seen him barefoot before and she felt almost like she was spying on him naked but she kept the blush at bay until Dwalin walked into view similarly clad. She felt the tips of her ears heat up as she took in his state of undress.   
The weather was pleasant there in the clearing and the air held an almost spring like quality to it as the sun shone weakly through the clouds that gathered overhead.   
Bofur had her under a canopy that was at the edge of the clearing to protect her from the cold rain should it start again but she hardly noticed as she watched the warriors circle each other.   
Thorin had pulled his raven's wing hair back in a low tail that seemed to make his silver streak look even wider and he had a cocky smirk on his face as he tossed barbs as Dwalin in khuzdul.   
_Why isn't Dwalin saying anything?  
  
_ She asked Bofur as much as she picked out words of Thorin questioning Dwalin's parentage and the bigger dwarf just growled.   
"Who knows with him? Maybe he agrees with our King." Bofur laughed as Dwalin snapped his thunderous gaze to the hatted dwarf, giving Thorin the perfect opportunity to take a swing at him.   
She slapped Bofur's arm "That wasn't very nice, Bofur."   
"I'm sorry, lass. Couldn't pass up a bit of fun at his expense." he apologized with his eyes still smiling.   
  
Despite size differences they were well matched against each other as they jabbed, kicked and dodged. Sweat was soon darkening the material of their light shirts turning Thorin's midnight blue and Dwalin's white almost see through. The sight of his tattoos peeking through the wet material sent a thrill threw her that she hadn't felt in many months.   
The two warriors clashed together and it was thrilling to see their muscles bulge as they struggled for the upper hand. She felt her pace quicken and her face flush as she watched them go around. Thorin put his foot against Dwalin's stomach and pushed in an attempt to loosen the bigger dwarf's grip on him. The was a rending sound and Thorin was free from Dwalin; he sprinted across the space where he leaned against the fence breathing hard while Dwalin stood in the middle completely unfazed other than his shirt was now ripped down the middle.   
Her eyes feasted on his exposed flesh and her mouth ran dry as they traced his tattoos as they melted into the lines of carved muscle on his abdomen.   
"oh my." she whispered fanning herself as things began to swim.   
"OH! Oh Bluebell, Bluebell!" 

The blood lust quieted in his blood as he heard Bofur exclaiming over Bluebell and he saw her flushed face, and how she was swaying on her feet. He beat her brothers to her in 3 huge steps and had her in his arms where she began to wiggle with weak protests.   
"I'm fine! Honestly put me down. I just a got over heated and light headed. Put me down Dwalin."   
He shook his head and turned to Dori with the question in his eyes.   
Dori seemed to relax a little and nodded "Take her back to her room. We'll be right there."   
  
He didn't realize he had forgotten his boots until the chilled tile of the hall seeped into the soles of his feet but it was a background discomfort as Bluebell rested in his arms.   
"I'm fine, really. You can put me down."   
He shook his head and squeezed her to him making her giggle before she let out a resigned sigh and laid her head on his shoulder.   
The door to her room swung open and he turned sideways to carry her inside it without bouncing her head off the door frame.  
"Ok, you carried me to my room, now will you put me down, please?" she turned big sad green eyes up at him and he felt his will crack.   
He sat her on her feet but kept a hand on her arm in case she started to swoon again.   
She placed a hand on his chest and he jumped at the feel of the warm palm on his bare muscle before looking down to meet her soft gaze.   
Bluebell was studying his mark and he swallowed the lump in his throat as she drew a finger around the edges of it. He had stopped looking at after the thorns had appeared in the Mountain; it just reminded him of how epically he had failed her.   
"Parts of it are faded." she murmured and he nodded not meeting her eyes. "And there are new flowers as well."   
He craned his head forward but could not see what she saw.   
"Forget-me-nots for enduring love and faithfulness, Bluebells for humility, Balloon Flowers for endless love, Phlox for our souls being united, and Honeysuckle for happiness and bonds of love. Yavanna has been busy with your mark, _cariad_."   
Warmth pooled in his chest and he grasped her hand where it was laying over his heart. She looked down to try and hide the pink blush that bloomed on her cheeks; the actions caused her curls to fall away from one of her ears and there in stark contrast to the pale pink flesh bloomed a small bunch of Forget-me-nots.   
His heart beat faster as he cradled the soft skin of her cheeks in his large hands as he turned her face up to his and he kissed her. She made a small startled gasp before returning the kiss with so much sweetness it made him want to weep. Her lips were as soft as he remembered but it was so much more as the heady rush of energy coursed through his veins. He held himself in check as he felt the swell of her midsection pressed against him.   
  
{The Valar smiled down at the sweet kiss between the couple. Of all the kisses recorded this one had to be one of the sweetest, purest kisses they had seen in a very long time.   
"Is this a turning point?" Mahal whispered in Yavanna's ear. She nodded before pulling him down into a kiss of their own while the others melted into the bushes to give them space.}  
  
  
The rains stopped and things began to dry out as the dry winter winds whipped across that part of Arda and the time arrived that Thorin needed to return to Erebor at the weeks end. Dwalin was conflicted on whether to follow his King or stay to try and finish earning Bluebell's forgiveness before he ran out of time. Thorin made the decision for his friend siting that he still had no voice so it's not like he could order anyone around and that he's be fine without him for the short while he'd be gone.   
He made Dwalin promise to send a Raven if he needed him or if anything happened.   
Dwalin instead wrote a long letter asking Balin to take care of things for him and a very special request that just makes Thorin roll his eyes as he tucks the parchment inside his coat.   
  
Dwalin couldn't help the sick feeling in his stomach as he watched Thorin leave with a small escort of Elves and he couldn't shake the feeling that something was staring at him though when he turned there was nothing there.   
  
  
"You've made remarkable growth, Bluebell and you look healthier than you have your entire stay." Nerissa beamed at the little lady as she pressed on Bluebell's distended abdomen.   
"So the baby has grown and not just my belly?" her question made the healer laugh which was so bright it made Bluebell laugh with her.   
"Oh yes, the little one has grown considerably. So much in fact that it feels like she's be here before long. I know we thought you'd have another month but with mixed pregnancies it's hard to tell. All the signs I'm getting from baby and your body says soon."   
Panic coursed like ice water through Bluebell's veins at Nerissa's statement. "But... but I'm not ready. There's so much left to do! And once she's here I'll have so little time left with her."  
"Your life force feels stronger than it ever has to me. Do not despair just yet!"  
Tears threaten to fall as her eyes burn as her heart races.  
_This can't be happening!  
  
Yavanna help me!  
  
__I'm not ready to leave my baby!  
  
_ Her heart cried out in a pain that only a mother understood and it moved Yavanna to tears.   
  
{"We have to do something! I can't just let her die!" Yavanna demanded as tears leaked down her cheeks and she slammed her hands down on the edge of the cauldron and it groaned as it tipped upsetting the image in the liquid,   
"You created Hobbit's, can't you do something to help her?" squeaked Nessa from where she hugged her husband.   
She ran her hands back through her golden hair as despair crept in.  
"Eru, Father, please help me." she whispered, a warm breeze that held a whisper lifted her hair and eased the concern on her face.  
"What did he say?" Varda looked envious as she hadn't felt the breeze nor their Father's words.   
"That all will be well." she answered watching the wind carry some of her blossoms away with it.   
"What if Dwalin can proves he loves her above all else?" asked Mahal as kissed her shoulder from behind.   
She nodded slowly looking at her bearded husband quizzically "That would earn my forgiveness. What do you know?"   
"I think he's about to get his chance." Manwe announced looking into the now still liquid of the cauldron.}  
  
  
Legolas sprinted down the hall towards the screams with the sinking feeling that he knew what was happening; curses forming on his lips as he almost collides with Captain of the Guard.   
  
"Yrchs and spiders!" snarled Tauriel as she skidded to a stop.   
He colored the air with curses that would have made his father cringe as he drew his sword before Tauriel stopped his charge.   
"You need to get the others out! What about the dwarves and Bluebell? She cannot fight and they will be caught unaware."   
"But." he wanted to fight, to rid his home such dark filth, to do something.   
She shook her head "There are too many when half the warriors are with your father. They planned, they caught us with our guard down and half the palace is wrapped in silk while those abominations sting anything that gets near an opening. WE need to get to your father and Mithrandr."   
  
Dwalin thought something sounded funny outside the window to his room but when he looked there wasn't anything there. He kept Grasper within reach as his skin prickled and he couldn't concentrate on the book of flowers Ori loaned him for nothing.   
Noise from the hall drew his attention to the door as the sound of something heavy hitting the floor pulled him in the other.   
" _What a fine fat dwarf! He will be a fine feast for us."_ whispered an insidious voice from behind before something sticky hit his shoulder. He almost dropped his ax when he turned to see a spider the size of a pony sidling towards him; memories flashed back to Bluebell cutting him down from a tree and then opening his cocoon only to see the monstrosities bearing down on them before his brave little Hobbit lead them off.   
" _What does it think it's going to do with that shiny weapon? My stinger is bigger."  
__  
_ He scoffed at that in that moment missed being able to taunt that disgusting thing in return  _Please my cock is bigger than your pathetic stinger._ He settled for splitting its head open with Grasper instead as it was too busy talking smack to realize his shiny things were sharp.   
His feet were in his boots and Keeper in his other hand as he ran from the room in search of his One and her brothers. He found Ori in the library oblivious to what was going on with his nose buried in some dusty tome, he ignored the scribes protests as he dragged him out in search of his brothers, Dori was in Bofur's room and probably would have been pissed at the interruption if Dwalin hadn't killed an Orc trying to get into their room, Nori was nowhere to be found and they killed a handful of Orcs and spiders the size of large dogs as they scoured their wing for Bluebell.   
"I think sh...she had a... a ch...check this afternoon." stuttered Ori as he shot an Orc in the eye with his sling shot. They all froze as a very feminine shriek came from somewhere ahead of them.   
"That's Bluebell!" shouted Bofur as he took off running smashing anything that dared move towards him with his mattock. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I based the couch scene on interactions between my husband and baby in utero from when I was pregnant.  
> I've seen conflicting things about yellow Tulips both says Sunshine in your smile and Hopeless Love. I'm going with the first since that's a pretty conflicting message for a flower. 
> 
>  


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time is running out as they flee from a new enemy and try to figure out how to save Bluebell before it's too late.  
> Dwalin is about to be put to the ultimate test to save her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so thrilled with all the Kudos and comments! Thank you!  
> I still do not have a beta but I am running everything I write through Microsoft word so hopefully that will cut down on the errors I've had.  
> I had the bones of this chapter written and then we had some electrical work done and all of it was lost! Even 100 pages of my back up was lost :( So that's why the delay.
> 
> I've messed with geography some to suit me. I somewhat apologize if it upsets anyone.  
> **Exploding spider bombs were my husbands idea and I will thank him for the nightmares I have conjured writing this! I hate spiders.

Bluebell had thought she was seeing things when at first little spiders began repelling down from the ceiling around where she sat discussing things with Nerissa. Until one hand landed on the Healer's hand and stung her; when the she squashed that one it seemed like the rest swarmed the elf. Bluebell helped her swat them off but not before Nerissa had been bitten several times over. The bites bloomed into red welts before their eyes and looked painful though the elf dismissed it.   
"I'm fine, don't worry about me. Did any get on you?" she waved off Bluebell's fussing, instead checking the Hobbit over for any little hitchhikers or red bumps.   
A gust of cold wind and the sound of something quite solid hitting the floor stopped any further inspection as they turned to see what could have possibly opened the balcony door.   
"Mahal's balls." Bluebell cursed under her breath.   
A spider the size of a pony was watching them with it's many eyes and Bluebell could have sworn she heard it whispering " _What a fine meal these two shall be. Wait we cannot eat the little one."  
  
__What in the world?_  
  
_I thought the council got rid the taint that spawned these things!_

The little spider's venom must have been more potent than they had thought as Nerissa swayed on her feet as she kept herself between the huge spider and her small patient.   
"Yo... You can't have her, filth." she wheezed as the spider rose to an intimidating height on it's spindly legs.   
_"You do not appear to be in any condition to stop me."_ it whispered before it skittered across the floor to slam it's bloated body into the elf and Bluebell screamed as she backed into the corner watching the grotesque thing sting her friend repeatedly.   
"Bluebell, DUCK!" she heard shouted as the door exploded inwards and an ax flew through the air to be buried into the face of the spider with a spray of black blood; the spider screamed as it collapsed and then went silent.   
She thought her knees were going to give out as relief flooded her at the sight of Dwalin stepping through the ruined door quickly followed by Dori, Ori and Bofur.   
Their eyes met and all she wanted was to be enfolded in his strong arms, to feel safe and protected. She started towards him only to be intercepted by Dori and Bofur; the latter running his hands down her arms and studying her for any injuries.   
"Lass, are you alright? Did that  _thing_ hurt you?" Bofur examined her with his eyes as Dori held her close.  
She relaxed into the warmth of her older brother but she shared a look with the bald warrior that shouted she'd rather be held by him and he blushed.   
"I'm fine, we're alright, Bofur. Nerissa protected me from the vile things. Yavanna wept is Nerissa alright?" she exclaimed as Dwalin went to retrieve Grasper.   
She watched him kneel beside the fallen elleth and couldn't help a tear well up as he sadly shook his head.   
"I'm so sorry, Bluebell. I know you were becoming friends with her." consoled Ori from beside her as he rubbed her back.   
Dwalin was signing something and the others answered with a resolute nod.   
  
  
**We cannot stay here. It's not safe.  
  
**    
Dwalin brought up the rear as they trotted through the inner palace looking for Nori. They were alternating between softly calling his name and cursing his decision to disappear at a time like this.   
"Mistress Bluebell! There you are, we've been looking all over for you! You can't stay here any longer. It's not safe. We're being overrun by those cursed spider and Orcs!" panted a slightly winded Legolas as he jogged up to them followed closely by a red haired elf they had seen before.   
Bluebell crossed her arms across the top of her pregnant midsection and arched a brow at the prince "Really? Would that have anything to do with the multitude of spiders that attacked me and Nerissa in the Halls of Healing?"   
The blond prince had the dignity to look embarrassed as he nodded.   
"Where is Nerissa?" asked the flame haired elf looking around their small group. Dwalin bristled as it seemed to stare coldly at him and then flicked their eyes to Bluebell.   
They all looked down Bluebell gave a small wet sniff before Bofur answered "She fell protecting Bluebell before we could reach them. We are sorry we were not in time to save her."   
He received a soft smile and nod from both elves before noise seemed to grow behind them.   
"We must keep moving. Where are you headed?" asked Legolas, his hand straying to his sword hilt.   
"We're trying to locate our wayward middle brother unfortunately then we are getting our sister away from all this." sniffed Dori while Ori wrung his hands behind him and nodded.   
The elves nodded in unison again and Dwalin got the distinct impression that those 2 spent a lot of time together.   
"Lead on, Master Dori. We must find him quickly and leave before we are over taken by these spawns of Melkor."   
  
They found Nori while he was looking for them and he insisted he had a way out that the spiders did not know of.   
  
**You idiot, this is the dungeon.  
** "I know where I'm going, thank you very much!" protested the star haired Dwarf as he led them past the cells that they had spent so much time in.   
"Are you sure you know where you're going? You're leading us down not up." asked Legolas' companion.   
"Now I know how you felt, Namad!" Nori quipped at Bluebell.   
She patted his arm while she rolled her eyes good naturedly "Oh sure just add morning sickness, a bitching Thorin, a load of self doubt, and you've nailed it."  
"You're the one that helped them escape?" blurted the red haired elf with eyebrows almost reaching her braided hairline. Legolas smirked behind them and looked to be trying to not giggle.   
Bluebell blushed to the tips of her ears as she nodded "I'm really sorry about all the trouble I caused you."   
A smile softened the fierce look of the elf and almost made them look feminine.   
  
"I still don't think you know where you're going." objected Legolas pinning Nori with a look that shouted what the prince thought of the intelligence level of dwarves.   
Nori looked affronted and drew up to his full height that was nothing compared to the elf's but it got he point across "I'll have you know that I've had this planned since I heard you tell this daisy muncher that the spiders were talking."   
Dwalin couldn't hold in the snort that erupted as both elves turned a bright pink and the prince glared daggers at the middle Ri.   
"You were spying on us?" he hissed at Nori who wore an expression of amusement.   
"Of course! I wouldn't be Thorin's Spy Master if I hadn't. Plus I needed to protect my pregnant sister and I don't trust anyone but my brothers and this big lummox with that." Nori stated looking unfazed by the black look Legolas was giving him.   
  
Dwalin shook his head while he smiled  **You know you're never going to be allowed back in here now?  
** Nori laughed "Aye but they can't stop me if they don't see me."  
  
"I love you, **Nadad** but this is the cellar. There is no way out of the cellars." Bluebell looked at her brother who was strutting around like a rooster.   
Ori looked at her confusion furrowing his brow "But Bluebell this is how you rescued us! Don't you remember?"   
She gave him a placating smile "Alright let me clarify. There is no way out that I can use in this condition." she patted her bump as a reminder.   
Nori gave her the smile of the cat that ate the canary as he strolled to a cloth covered heap.   
"Ah but you are mistaken, my sweet sister." and he pulled the tarp with flourish to reveal a high walled canoe of sorts.   
  
This trip down the river was much smoother than her previous trip holding on to the outside of a barrel. The baby and her stomach however did not appreciate the rapids and she was soon rid of the little she had eaten for breakfast.   
  
It was a cruel twist of fate that they somehow ended up back at the exact same stretch of beach that she had pulled the barrels up to before. She scowled at the offending rocks as she remembered everyone complaining about riding in barrels while she vomited up half the river and shivered in the cold.   
She pushed such thoughts aside as she turned to see the burnt remains of Lake Town; she felt a twinge of sadness looking at the ruined town but was gladdened to know that Bard and his children had survived the Orcs setting in ablaze.   
"Now what?" she asked the group as they seemed to be having a silent standoff.   
"We go to Erebor." answered Dori at the same time Legolas said "We head back to the camp on the battlefield, back to my Father."   
The shouting that ensued from there made her cringe and miss her skillet that had been left behind. She was thankful Ori had grabbed her cloak when he had snagged his messenger bag but she felt very vulnerable standing there unarmed.   
  
As the group argued they failed to notice the movement in the trees on the far side of the river.   
_"We have to tell the Master that the halfling has escaped Mirkwood and is heading towards Erebor."  
__"She's not going to like that."  
__"I intend to play dead after I tell her."  
  
_ {"Who is this 'Master' they are referring to? Azog and Bolg are dead, who is rallying these abominations now?" asked Nessa as she watched the group begin to make camp along the river.   
"Bastards have Mothers and Wives." answered Vaire as she trailed around the cauldron.   
"Melkor's taint is so strong, I hate it!" grumped Vana as she grimaced when images of the spiders flashed in the liquid.  
"This is why we can't have nice things." scowled Mahal as they watched the orcs finish ransacking Mirkwood's palace.   
Manwe crossed his arms across his broad chest and leveled a knowing look at the lot "You know it's all about balance. Good can't exist without evil."   
Yavanna rolled her eyes at her brother's all-knowing attitude "Yes but that doesn't mean I have to like it nor do I want it stalking my children."}  
_  
  
__**Let's head towards the elves camp first and then on to Erebor if Bluebell is comfortable with that. I don't think she'll handle it well if we push straight to Erebor.  
  
**_ Dwalin was pleased with his foresight as they made their way around Long Lake towards to the ruins of Dale and the tent city that had been erected beside it.   
  
Bluebell rubbed her lower back and watched her footing on the rocks that carpeted the shore. Some were slippery even to rough hobbit feet and with how swollen hers felt she didn't trust her traction. The wind whipped around them and she tried to breath through her mouth to avoid smelling the scent of burnt wood and fish oil. Normally she enjoyed the smell of a campfire or fireplace but paired with damp and fish it made her stomach roll.   
_If I never eat fish again it will be too soon.  
  
__Don't throw up.  
  
__Don't throw up.  
  
__Fish is all we're getting for now baby.  
  
Appreciate the hard work your Irak’Adad and Adad have put into making us this fish.   
  
_ Dwalin watched Bluebell shift subtly trying to hide her discomfort as she leaned against a large boulder. Her brothers had managed to find enough dry wood for a small fire and it beat away some of the cold but they couldn't make it too large for fear of lingering Orcs.   
"What's the matter, Bluebell?" asked Bofur from where he was reclined against Dori on the other side of the fire.   
She stopped wiggling and gave them an apologetic smile "Baby is pressing on my lower back and I just can't get situated."   
Dwalin shared a look from where he was standing with Ori who jerked his head in her direction.   
**But I can't talk to her.  
** The scribe rolled his eyes at him  **You can listen and help her. It's kinda your fault she's in this situation.**  
He stifled the urge to cringe and nodded.   
"I can he- Ack!"  
Legolas had been on his way to offer his help when Nori's leg appeared from behind a rock tripping the prince.   
"I think Dwalin can help her." announced Nori popping up on the other side of camp with a wicked smile as Legolas was smoothing his rumpled feathers and the red haired elf hid a smile behind their hand.   
  
He gently touched her shoulder and she smiled up at him before scooting to share the rock with him. He pulled her in front of him and worked his hands into the tight muscles of her back. Her head lolled back, spilling her curls across his hands; a small sound came from her throat and he felt his mouth go dry.   
He kept working his thumbs into the muscles of her lower back drawing more and more sweet sounds from her. His mind raced through everything he could think of to stop the pressure building in his pants and then she scooted back to press her bottom into him; he swore he saw stars before reining it back in.   
_No!  
  
__Cannot think like that with her so close!  
  
__She's pregnant for Mahal's sake!  
  
_ {Yavanna frowned as watched Dwalin struggle with his attraction.   
"Why is he fighting being attracted to her? He was before; that's how this mess started in a way." she asked her husband who was face palming at his child's stubbornness.   
"I think he feels that he still doesn't deserve her and therefore cannot be attracted to her." guessed Varda where lounged in the grass.   
"Plus I'm sure he's scared of hurting her or his attentions being unwanted." added Manwe from beside his wife.   
"Could you nudge Bluebell into letting him know she still cares?" queried Nessa from where she twirled amongst the daisies.   
Yavanna tapped a thin finger against her lips and watched them "Maybe."}  
  
Bluebell leaned back against Dwalin's broad warm chest and sighed as the ache in her back was gone for the first time in a week. She couldn't help the small smile that pulled at her lips as she felt his erection pressed against her bottom and it was so hard to resist wiggling into it to see what he would do.   
_Should I wiggle?  
  
__It would inappropriate.... but fun.  
_ She cast a surreptitious glance around the camp and was very surprised to see that everyone was asleep or in the case of the elves that had turned their backs to keep watch.   
The urge became too much to resist and she wiggled back against him and felt the shudder that ran through his frame at the contact. She was surprised when he lightly pressed the bulge in his pants against her and she felt the small flames of desire stir low in her belly.   
" _I wish we could be together like we were at Beorn's."_ she whispered to him turning her face to see him.   
His moonshine eyes glittered in the firelight and he nodded as he wrapped his great arms around her pulling her tight against him; he splayed his hands across the expanse of her belly and sighed. She couldn't help but echo the sound as she nestled into his warmth and looked skyward. Stars glittered above them stretching as far as the eye could see and they glittered their cold light with an abandon that showed they held no clues to what was happening underneath them.   
They looked like a thousand diamonds strewn across a blue blanket as they sat there at the edge of the water. 

Legolas couldn't help the soft smile that graced his lips as he listened to the bald dwarf and the hobbit cuddle behind them before he turned to gaze Tauriel who was staring at the stars. He could see them reflected with wonder in her green eyes and resisted the urge to break the spell they had over her. She loved the stars more than he could understand and it just made him love her more for it.

The firelight lit up her hair and made it look like it was kin to the flames instead of hair. He slid his hand over hers where it rested on the rock between them and she turned a surprised face to him that morphed into a smile as she interlaced their fingers, and squeezed.

"Manen carach?"

She nodded scooting closer to him while looking out over the dark landscape.

"Baneth lin sila celair." he spoke softly so that only she'd hear him, his words being carried on the cold wind that swirled around them.  
She didn't move, he could barely see her breath making small puffs of mist as she sat there.

_Did I say something wrong?_

_I thought for sure she shared my feelings._

_I never should have said anythi-_

  
His brain seemed to shut off as petal soft lips pressed against his suddenly.  
It was hesitant, and he could feel the tension and apprehension she held in her stiff posture as she pulled away from him.

"I'm sorry. That was a mistake." her wide eyes pulled at him and it took his mind a minute to register just how vulnerable and stricken she looked.

She made it several yards from the camp when a gruff voiced came from near his elbow "Ya should probably follow her if you're hoping for her to still speak to you in the mornin'."  
He didn't even have to glance down to know it was the irritatingly observant star haired dwarf and it stuck in his craw that the hairy bloke had a point.

 _By the stars doesn't he ever miss anything?_  


_Eru why does he have to be right!_  


"Tauriel, wait!"

She stopped red hair swinging from her strides but refused to turn and face him. When he circled to in front of her he could see that she was flushed in embarrassment and wouldn't meet his eyes.  
"Faeren, please look at me."  
She jerked her head to the side and shut her eyes; he felt like an ass for hurting her and reached for her hand. She let him hold it but obstinately wouldn't open it or look at him.

"Guren, I am sorry. You surprised me is all."

She snorted but relaxed her stance a touch. He touched her chin gently and she followed his touch to where she was looking up at him. Hurt sparkled in her eyes and he knew that was the equivalent of tears from her, and he hated himself in that moment.  
"Hin lin bain sui lthigalad buin aear." he whispered as he leaned down to press his lips to hers softly but firmly.

She reacted the same that he had and right when he despaired that he had ruined it all she surged into the kiss and twined her arms around his neck with a small sound of pleasure. 

  
Nori smirked as he watched the elves embrace and sank back down to lie beside Ori with his hands folded under his head.

  
  
Healthy, fully supplied scouts can make it between Mirkwood and Dale in about 4 days but with a couple elves, 5 dwarves and a heavily pregnant Hobbit it took them about 2 weeks before the ruins came into view.   
  
"Oh thank Yavanna." groaned Bluebell as they reached the edge of the camp and she leaned against Ori in exhaustion. 

 **Does she want me to carry her? I don't mind.** he signed to Ori mentally cursing that he still couldn't speak even though things had been improving immensely between them.  
Ori relayed the offer and the hobbit snorted.

"I'm the size of a cow! I do not want anyone getting hurt trying to lift me. I shall be fine, thank you. However when we get a chance to sit down someone is going to tell me why Dwalin still isn't speaking." she pinned them all with a questioning stare that made them suddenly find other things to look at while he just smiled at her and shrugged.

"Milord, prince Legolas! What are you doing here?"

Elves surrounded them all calling questions and offerings of food, and lodging which Legolas immediately accepted.  
"I need to see my Father, take me to him. Take care of the others and make sure Mistress Bluebell has something to eat-" his order was cutoff.  
"Not fish!" she squeaked from behind the taller beings. Dwalin stretched his neck trying to see if his brother or Thorin were in the crowd but he couldn't see much over everyone.  
Legolas smiled "Not fish however and if there are any other dwarves here please send them to Bluebell's tent."

The tent they were herded into was huge, much larger than Dwalin had seen in a long time but it made sense considering how much taller elves and Men were compared to dwarrow.  There were chairs that were almost too tall for the dwarves let alone Bluebell trying to sit in one but there were also cushions on the floor and she sank down onto a pile of them with a grateful moan. Dori clucked around her fluffing the cushions so that her back was supported and he pulled some pillows from one of the beds hidden behind a screen building what looked like a literal nest around the pregnant hobbit.  
Ori sat down next to her cushioned nest and already had his book out, quill flying as he wrote of the newest adventure Dwalin was sure, Nori was checking all the corners and edges of the tent checking for who knows what.

Probably looking for spiders, he smirked.

The red haired elf had followed them and had positioned herself by the tent flap.

 _Tauriel._ His brain supplied as he looked at her stern countenance with her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. She had picked up a quiver that was strapped to her thigh now and a bow slung across her back.  


He had been very surprised to learn that the elf was female though looking at her now it made sense, and was the Captain of the Palace guard to boot. If he had his voice back it would have been interesting to speak to her about training schedules and duty rosters but that would have to wait till later.

"Alright, now that I'm off my feet I have a question and I expect someone to answer me." came Bluebell's sharp voice from where she was ensconced in pillows and now a blanket. He flinched at that tone, recognizing it as her "don't even try to pull anything on me or I'll hit you where it hurts" tone.

Bluebell watched as all the dwarves in the room seemed to freeze at her tone before Nori coughed "And what's that, **namadith**?"

"Are you sure this can't wait?" asked Dori as he fussed around her "You've had such a long day. Perhaps a nap would be better and then we can talk."

A snigger came from Tauriel who was trying to hide her smile behind her hand while she stared at the ceiling while Ori squeaked and tried to hide behind his journal even though he was sitting right next to the Hobbit.

"Nice try." she informed them rolling her eyes "But I want to know why Dwalin hasn't spoken a single word in almost a month."

She watched her brothers and Dwalin share conspiratorial looks while Bofur just shook his head and slid his hat over his eyes where he leaned back against a trunk.

Dwalin opened his mouth and shut it before pulling a face that she could only label as extreme frustration before his hands started flying through Inglishmek.  


{"Is she going to get mad?" asked Nessa as Yavanna began to giggle. She schooled her face and watched Bluebell's scowl get deeper as the dwarves held a silent conversation around her.  
"Possibly,” Yavanna tapped her chin in thought “Hobbit's are quite possessive of their mates and pregnant ones even more so. You might want to cover your ears dear." she patted Mahal's arm.  
"Why?" he looked at her with confusion written plainly on his face.  
"MAHAL DID WHAT!" a shriek erupted from the cauldron that made Nessa clap her hands over her ears.  
"That's why. Clearly she is not happy with you."  
"But... but I was trying to help!"}  
  
  
The little hobbit was pacing the tent absolutely fuming that the Valar had decided to interfere and take Dwalin's voice away. A small part of her was touched that they even cared about little bitty her enough to punish someone for behaving such as Dwalin had behaved. The main reason she was mad was that none of her brothers or Bofur had felt the need to tell HER what was going on and they thought it was alright!

Dwalin looked truly apologetic, his eyes the grey of a spring sky before the rain and she couldn't honestly blame him for not telling her when it was obvious that he was embarrassed plus he had no freaking voice!

Dwalin snapped his fingers at Bofur getting the toy maker's attention from where he was eyeing Bluebell like she might start shrieking again.

**She needs to calm down. This cannot be good for her. Offer her-**

"IF he has something to say to me-" she blushed as she realized he couldn't just say it to her face.

"Easy lass, he was saying that you need to calm down. It can't be healthy getting so worked up right now." Bofur held his hands up trying to placate the little female.

She graced Dwalin with a light blush and a small smile "Oh. I thought... well I don't know what I thought but I just wish he could speak to me."

**Me too.**

Bofur translated "Aye he wishes that as well."

**But I do deserve this for how I have acted. I never should have doubted you nor questioned the parentage of our child.**

Bluebell looked at him with a light he didn't recognize shining in her eyes and decided to continue for as long as Bofur was willing to translate for him.

 **I was wrong and I handled everything poorly.** **I became so focused on making things right the dwarrow way that I forgot that you are not a dwarf and the ways that matter to us don't have to same impact with your soft heart. I was absorbed with apologizing and it made me forget what made me who I am. It made me into a dwarf I know you didn't like and I do not blame you because looking back I do not like myself at that time. I cannot even begin to tell you how sorry I am for all of this. You deserve to be courted properly and not running across the countryside in your condition. It's my fault that you are not warm and safe in Erebor awaiting our child and instead are hungry, tired and fading in a tent city of elves. I love you and with whatever time we have left I will make sure you never doubt the depths of my love again nor the truth behind my feelings.**

There was no sound in the tent aside from the others breathing as Dwalin watched emotions and thoughts chase themselves across Bluebell's face and shine in her eyes. He stood before her with his hands at his sides waiting for whatever she decided.

He had turned his sight inward as she stood there staring at him and was trying not to focus on the pain of his heart breaking. He didn't even notice that she had closed the distance between them on silent feet until he felt a hand grasp the front of his tunic pulling him down to meet her lips.

  
{"How was that? Do you forgive him now?" Nessa practically bounced as she grinned up at Yavanna who had silver tracks on her cheeks.  
"I want to but not yet. It was a touching apology and I can feel that it did wonders for Bluebell. She feels stronger, more whole than before but he needs to prove it. Actions speak louder than words especially in this instance when his words have caused so much pain."

The rest nodded in understanding as they watched the pair share a sweet moment.

"What's that?" asked Ulmo pointing to the edge of the image.

"Melkor spawn." growled Mahal}

   
In the hours before dawn when it felt like the whole world was holding it's breath waiting for the sun to return small creatures crept across the plain, hiding behind the great gouges in the earth and debris left behind from the Battle of Five Armies.   
The small goblins slipped almost unseen into the encampment before one ran into a elf that was returning to his post from using the latrine.   
"What the-?" he barely had time to register what was happening before the imp threw something at him that exploded on impact with his chest.   
"Corporal what's- Sweet Eru!" the Lieutenant froze as he saw the other collapse with spiders swarming all over him. The goblin rushed him but froze to clasp its clawed hands over it's ears as he blasted his horn. 

  
A new sound drew Dwalin up from the deep sleep he had been in curled around Bluebell's sleeping form.   
  
The realization that it was a elven horn being blown was a shock to his system that had him up and from the bed in a blink. He jammed his feet back into his boots and went around waking the others from their various sleeping locales.   
"Wha-what is going on?" mumbled Bluebell from her nest of pillows and blankets.   
"EEEee-" he stomped his foot and kicked Bofur's leg.   
"What was that for!"   
**The elves have sounded an alarm you, jackass.  
** Bofur's eyes popped open wide and he got to his feet as well making sure his mattock is close at hand.   
"You're joking!" Dori demanded.   
The horn sounded again and the dwarves all found their weapons and began to gather up their coats.   
"Will someone please tell me what is going on!" Bluebell implored standing beside the bed with Balin's cloak around her shoulders; one hand was rubbing the front of her belly while the other did the same for her lower back.   
"Something is happening; **Mizim** but we do not know what. The elves wouldn't sound an alarm for no reason." Ori answered from his spot across the tent where he was once again writing quickly.   
"Wonderful." she muttered under her breath as she swayed a little.   
Dwalin watched her and couldn't ignore his gut that there was something going on that she wasn't giving voice to.   
He booted Bofur again and pointed at Bluebell  **Ask if she's alright. I get the feeling she's not.  
** "Oi, lass. This great ox wants to know if you're alright. He thinks something is wrong."  
She refused to meet Dwalin's eye and straightened her stance with a flinch "I'm hugely pregnant and something might be attacking where we are for the second time in as many weeks but otherwise I'm peachy."   
He met the toy maker's eye and knew he saw it too.   
**I don't believe her.**  
"I don't either."   
  
  
It felt like they were sitting on pins and needles for hours when in reality it had been maybe 20 minutes when the screams began first far away and then they got closer.   
"I'm going to slip out and see what is going on." whispered Nori.   
"Don- Dammit." Before Dori could come up with a protest, their brother had slipped from the tent and vanished into the shrinking shadows.   
  
Light seemed to grow around their tent and the soldiers running past cast long shadows on the wall.   
"It's not dawn yet. What is making that light?" Bluebell felt dread growing her stomach as a cramp grew in the small of her back.   
Bofur crouched to peek out the tent flap before shutting it quickly and moving to the flap at the opposite end to peer out, clutching his mattock tightly.   
"I don't think we can wait for Nori to come back, not if we want to slip away unseen."   
Worry was growing like a tight knot in her chest as a pain gripped her belly and she turned her face so they couldn't see her flinch.   
_Not now little one.  
  
We're not ready for you.  
  
__Not now.  
  
Mumma is going to need to run.   
  
__You have to wait.  
  
  
_ They slipped from their tent and sprinted hunched over towards to edge of camp closest to Erebor. They could see the battle raging behind them and heard the hiss of the wretched spiders. Nori was nowhere to be seen and it made Bluebell's heart hurt in worry about her middle brother.   
Dwalin lead the way and ducked into a tent not far from the edge of camp as more elves rushed past and they all waited in silence just trying to get their breathing under control. The cramps were back in her midsection but she was more concerned about what they were going to do.   
_S_ he looked out the crack of the tent that faced the Lonely Mountain and gulped at the distance between them and it. She could believe that just a couple months ago she had ran that distance to try and save everyone.   
She realized with a start that they were actually closer to the Back Door than they were to the Front Gate.  
She rubbed soothing circles over where the baby was stirring, it wasn't being as active as usual but there was a lot going on and the cramps she was feeling were probably making it tight living quarters.   
  
She turned back to see Dwalin's hands flowing through signs so quickly that even if she knew them she doubted she could follow it. Ori had moved over by her without her notice and Dori looked torn between going by them, going to be by Bofur.   
Pain was radiating around her middle and she took a deep breath trying to think of anything but the discomfort and terrible timing that was happening at that moment.   
"Someone tell me what is going on right now!" she snapped letting the pain bleed into her tone.   
The males all exchanged startled looks and at that moment she's pretty sure if they could have drawn straws to tell her they would have. The silence stretched between them growing taut like the muscles of her abdomen when Ori finally broke it.   
"Honestly you lot. I swear bunch of idiots." the scholar shook his head at his elders before turning to Bluebell "Spiders and Orcs are here. They followed us for who knows what reason but we need to get you out of here."   
Panic lanced through her at the thought of trying to run again and then she thought of what would happen if they stayed. The thought of staying and risking the baby's life along with everyone elses made her want to throw up.   
"Smashing. So what is that plan?"   
Ori jerked his head in the direction of Dwalin and Bofur "They're working on one right now."   
  
Bluebell paced while the others worked on a plan; moving seemed to help with the ache in her back and she was going to use it. Her ears twitched as it seemed like things were growing louder which meant closer and that meant it was time to go.   
"Things are moving closer."   
No one showed a sign of hearing her.   
She stomped her foot and repeated herself.   
Nothing.   
A brilliant idea popped into her head to test their hearing.  
She turned to pace back the way she had come as she declared loudly. "So I think I'm in labor and we need to go because the fighting is getting closer."   
  
**crickets fighting**  
  
"You're what?" Bofur yelped.   
She turned to find all four of them staring at her, Ori looked pasty white, Dori looked like he couldn't breathe, Bofur had dropped his hat in surprise and Dwalin had a pained look on his face like he had known all along but was hoping he was wrong.   
With perfect timing as usual Nori came popping through the tent flap with a flourishing "You'll never guess who I found!" 

"Yay, its Gandalf." Bluebell gave a halfhearted cheer as another cramp grew in her back.   
  
  


  


  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sindarin ( I found these phrases on Tumblr and Fanfiction.net so I hope they are not garbage!)  
> Manen Carach~ How are you doing?  
> Faeren~ My Soul  
> Guren~ My Heart  
> Hin lin bain sui lthigalad buin aear~ Your eyes are as beautiful as moonlight on the sea.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything comes to a head and Dwalin makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Bluebell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm all glowy over all the comments and kudos ::blushes::

  
Dwalin had never been so happy to see a wizard as he was right then when Tharkun stepped in behind Nori.   
The Grey Wizard had blood and mud spattered on the edge of his robe, and he held both his sword and staff. His relief at seeing Bluebell whole and safe was evident on his face but it shifted into concern as he read the faces in the tent landing on Dwalin's last.  
"I think you'll be needing this." Dwalin was astonished when he was handed his war hammer!   
He signed his thanks as he fastened Grasper and Keeper into their spots on sides.   
"He says Thank you." Bofur translated for him almost out of reflex.   
"Ah yes, I had heard that youngest son of Fundin was being punished by Mahal for his actions. I'm surprised you haven't been forgiven yet."   
"I have forgiven him mostly but he has to gain the forgiveness of Yavanna as well." Bluebell's voice rang through the tent from where she leaned on a trunk.   
  
Tharkun flowed across the tent to the hobbit and knelt beside her to speak in low tones.   
  
"My dear we must you away from here and quickly." Gandalf stated softly next to her.   
She nodded and stifled a groan as she straightened her spine, the pain flaring low again. "I know, I know. Massive spiders and Orcs have some to crush Thranduil."   
"That is where you are wrong, dear Bluebell. They are not after just the elves. They are also after the one who helped slay Azog and his son Bolg."   
Bluebell stopped in her pacing and frowned at the Man "I had nothing to do with Bolg and Thorin cut off Azog's head not I."  
"I know that but Azog's wife Maug is after you for kin slaying."   
Bluebell felt herself blanch followed by a grimace as a true contraction gripped her abdomen.   
Gandalf gripped her shoulder "How long has this been going on?" he demanded.   
She shook her head "I don't know! We've been a bit busy running for our lives."   
"Fool of a Took." the Istari whispered under his breath.   
  
Her brothers were by the far flap watching the fighting when suddenly Ori started whispering "Uh oh! Uh oh! Time to go!"   
  
Dori scooped Bluebell up mid-stride before she could even object and had them out the other end of the tent when a earth rumbling roar shook the air.   
  
Bluebell stared over Dori's shoulder as he raced with her from the camp the others scattered around them and mourned the loss the Mirkwood elves were experiencing. Spiders the sizes of horses were shooting webs at anything that moved and had web traps placed around the other sides of the camp. A huge grey spider that was bigger than anything she had ever seen rose in the back ground and she could see a lone Orc standing on its back.   
It had to be Maug and when she saw the small group running from the burning tent city nothing could drown out her screams of rage.   
She was surprised to see Tauriel sprinting up behind them followed by quite a few others and Bluebell could only hope that Legolas was amongst the ones following them.   
  
  
Dwalin heart sank when he realized that the Orcs had blocked off the way to the Front Gate of Erebor with almost invisible strands of spiders web that dripped with something he really didn't want to find out what it did. They had moved debris from Dale and the battle field as well to help block them.   
**We can't get through here.  
** "To the Back Door then." Bofur answered.   
"I think I can fit under there." Nori eyed it "Then I could get word to Thorin quicker than you would."   
A low groan pulled their attention back to the Hobbit that was hiding her face in Dori's shoulder. Dori looked panicked and pale while he rubbed her back, and tried to offer comforting words.   
"I can fit too!" volunteered Ori.   
**Go. Get Help and tell Thorin what is happening.  
  
** The brothers shimmied under the webs and never even made the silk strands vibrate even a little.   
"Dori put me down." Bluebell ordered.   
Dori shook his head "No, Mizim. The Orcs are gaining on us. We must keep going."   
Dwalin felt his stomach clench when Bluebell moaned "I feel like I'm going to throw up."   
_This is bad.  
  
Mahal what do we do?_  
  
_She can't have to baby out here!_  
  
_Mahal! Yavanna! Manwe! Help us!_  
  
_I don't care if I ever speak again! Just help me save my family!  
  
It cannot end like this. Keep my voice just save my One and child.   
  
  
_ {Yavanna felt Dwalin's prayer in her heart and she knew that he meant it. He didn't care if he ever got his voice back as long as Bluebell and the baby survived. She could feel the truth to his words and she turned to her husband.   
"How can we help them?"   
Mahal looked over her shoulder "What about giving them a boost towards the Secret door."   
"I could but how will that save them? I don't know how much longer Bluebell has." She chewed her lip as she watched them run towards safety.  
"I could have the wind give them a push. If I had it push their enemies away it would push them too in the wrong direction." Manwe explained.   
"I'll stir up some weather once they reach the stairs." Ulmo offered.   
"Lets do it."}  
  
"Quickly to the stairs!" shouted Gandalf as the elves began to pick off the orcs that were closing on them.   
  
If Dwalin hadn't known better he would have sworn the ground was pushing them forward as they ran and they were closing in on stairs quicker than he had expected.   
  
Bluebell couldn't handle it anymore; the contractions were on top of each other and her stomach couldn't take the bouncing any longer.   
"I need down. Put me down, Dori!"   
He sat her down at the base of the stairs and she immediately puked barely missing Bofur's boots.   
"Come on lass. We'er almost to the door." Bofur pulled her arm over his shoulders and helped her begin to climb. The rock felt good and strong under her feet and she felt grounded as they climbed in between contractions.   
She had thought the climb before was terrifying when she was going to go riddle with a dragon but it was nothing compared now. Trying to climb them while in labor and pursued by someone that wanted her dead, and they had giant eight legged abominations helping them.   
  
They made it to the first landing half way to the door and she had to stop for a minute while the pain built inside of her. She fell into her own world and felt as though she was watching everything though a piece of cotton as Bofur smashed a spider with his mattock  before going to engage another.   
The world snapped back into sharp relief as the contraction ended and she watched as everyone fought near the bottom of the stairs to keep the orcs back.   
"Here we go Mistress Baggins." Bluebell was surprised to see Tauriel beside her, wrapping one long arm around her back and they began to climb again.   
  
Dwalin swung his hammer until it was covered in gore and he had it splattered all over himself. The spiders had started to avoid him once they realized he could kill them in one swing but the orcs wanted up those stairs. He wasn't about to let them put one filthy toe on those stone rungs.   
_Have to keep them away from Bluebell.  
  
__Must protect them.  
  
_ "Dwalin!"   
He snapped his head to see Bofur pointing up the stairs and his heart stopped beating as he saw a spider climbing almost upside down trying to reach the next landing where Bluebell and Tauriel were headed.   
**Go! I'll be fine!**  
Bofur shook his head "I can't!" he turned and Dwalin saw the arrow sticking from the miner's thigh.  
He couldn't climb stairs quickly with that.   
He searched for the others and found Dori fighting 2 spiders at once. He was wearing them down but Dwalin wasn't about to distract him and get him killed. Gandalf was muttering under his breath and looked to be trying to lay a trap.   
_I am not dumb enough to try interrupting a Wizard casting a spell.  
  
_ He charged up the stairs as the first drops of ice water hit his bald head.   
_Rain?_  
  
_Seriously? Right now?_

The rain was soon pouring down soaking him to the skin in seconds and it felt like the wind was trying to lift him up the steps as he climbed them faster than he thought was possible.  
He spun and swung, smashing anything that wasn't dwarf or elf in his path until he was right behind Bluebell.

"Ahhh I can't! I can't go any farther!" she cried starting to sink to the steps with her knees apart so close to the door he could hit it with a rock.

He slid under her other arm and tried to give her a reassuring smile. She tried to smile back but it was lost in a gasp as she looked down.

"Mistress Baggins I think your waters just broke." observed Tauriel with a look of one trying to not panic.

"Nooooooo." moaned Bluebell as they made it to the Doorstep.  
  
  


A loud **Whumpf** like someone dropping something heavy shook the very rock they were standing on and Dwalin took a moment to peer over the edge to see what looked like a shock wave roll across the plain killing Orcs and spiders alike in its path.

"Yavanna's tits what was that?" asked Tauriel.                   

Dwalin pointed down towards the now smiling wizard.  
She rolled her eyes and murmured "Of course it was Mithrandr."

 

A new grating sound like metal rubbed on stone came from the edge as Bluebell began to groan through another contraction but it turned into a scream as legs appeared over the lip of rock and a voice growled "I will have your head, Shire rat for killing my son and partner." 

Dwalin darted forward and wrenched the hidden door open before going back to pick up a panicking Bluebell who clutched at him while trying to undo her pants with one hand.

"Oh Yavanna she's coming! I can feel her! Dwalin help me!"  
He was torn between trying to help her bring their impatient child into the world and going to obliterate the foe gaining on them.   
"GET HER INSIDE!" shouted Tauriel as the elf squared off against the behemoth of a spider.   
  
  


Bluebell wanted to focus on the giant spider carrying the orc that was wanted her head but the burning between her thighs was all consuming and she knew what it meant.

"My pants! Help me get my pants off!" she screamed as Dwalin set her inside the hidden door and  almost tossed Tauriel in behind her.  
  
"Hey!" Tauriel shrilled at him.   
He pointed at Bluebell who had her back to the wall still trying struggling to get her pants off and then held up his own bloody, iron clad hands. She nodded her understanding and turned to the laboring hobbit. 

"Here, here Bluebell let me help you." the elleth's hands made short work of her buttons before helping her pull the soaked garment off.

Bluebell couldn't help the shriek that escaped as she saw more spiders coming over the edge before the searing pain took over again.

"I- I can see the head!" cried Tauriel excitement coloring her voice. She wanted to speak but all that she could do was grunt as the pressure built in her pelvis and she felt as though she was going to split in two. Through the haze she saw Dwalin make short work of anything that even looked towards the door and her heart sang with love for him as her body cried out with pain. She gripped the elf-maid's shoulders as she curled forward into the crest of the pain and heard howls like an animal leaving her. 

 

"Goood I will kill your spawn first so you will know my pain and then I'll kill you." growled an almost feminine voice as one of the ugliest orcs Dwalin had ever seen rose into view as the giant spider finished its climb while Bluebell howled in the hall behind him.

He felt like he was moving in slow motion as he slayed the minions of this hell bitch as screams echoed around him; one orc blending into the next, blood spraying as Grasper and Keeper cut through all in their path. 

Suddenly he realized that the spiders were replaced by goblins and panic seized his heart. It was a never ending tide of enemies and he was alone while trying to protect his One. He knew in his heart that Tauriel would never let any harm come to Bluebell but that didn't stop the dread winding through his veins to weigh his limbs in hopelessness. That emotion cost him as a goblin caught his thigh with it's little blade and he kicked out sending it sailing off the edge.   
  


Time stood still as Bluebell's wails were replaced by a new high pitched, reedy one.

He turned to see Tauriel holding a wriggling bloody infant in her hands, a smile on the elf's face that he would never forget.

"A daughter." he read her lips and in that moment he thought his heart would burst before an evil voice sent ice to his heart.

 

"Bring me the child."

 

Dwalin watched Bluebell smile radiantly at him as she pulled the baby to her chest and he devoured the scene, desperate to commit every detail to memory as the weight of his decision settled on his shoulders like a lead weight. There was one way to protect them, to make sure nothing got near them after he fell.  __  
Thorin will take care of them.

_Yes that will do it._

_  
A daughter._

_  
_ _I have a daughter._

_  
_ _How could I be so blessed after all this?_

_Mahal protect them._

_Yavanna keep them safe for me._   
  


{"What is he planning?" peeped Nessa as she peeked between her fingers.

"I think I know." answered Mahal looking both sad and proud of his child's decision.

"He can't." whispered Yavanna looking at her husband with horror in her eyes.

All he did was nod and a sob came from Yavanna as they looked down at the battle unfolding.

Tulkas looked at them from across the cauldron with astonishment written on his face "Is-is he going to sacrifice himself to save them?"

Varda began to cry as Manwe responded "It certainly looks like he is going to make the ultimate sacrifice for them."

"Where did that bitch even come from?" shrilled Este as she channeled her sadness into anger.

"Female Orcs are rare but not unheard of. Melkor didn't discriminate on gender for those that he twisted. Most females didn't survive the process only the extremely vicious ones did. Maug was one of the last created and Azog hid her in Moria for many years." commented Ulmo from his spot in the grass, summoning the rain had tired the Vala and the spiders made him squeamish.

"Do you think Dwalin is going to die?" Vana looked at her brothers with tears streaming down her fair cheeks and they all looked away in their reluctance to answer.

"That will depend on how quickly Thorin Oakenshield moves." Vaire disclosed from her loom at the edge of the clearing.}

 

Tauriel drew her dagger and crept towards the door, preparing to help protect them when she saw a look on Dwalin's face that she had only seen a few times before in her many years. It was the look of man that knew what he had to do and he wasn't coming back from it.

He mouthed "Tell them I love them." as tears trickled down from his silver eyes to mix with the rain in his black beard and her heart sank as Bluebell seemed to realize what something was happening. She was trying to rise but there was no strength left in her legs so soon after giving birth and Tauriel knew she wasn't going anywhere.

She stood to join the bald warrior when he shook his head and pointed at his family "protect them." he whispered. 

"No. LET ME HELP!" she shouted as he shoved the heavy rock door shut and they heard the slam of his hammer as he destroyed the rock around so that none could open it again.  
  
Tauriel slammed her body against the rock but it wouldn't give, not even in the slightest no matter how hard she pushed into it. She dropped down to sit beside Bluebell and pulled the smaller woman into her arms where she cried and the baby sensing it's mother's pain added it's cries.

  
He could hear their cries as he destroyed to rock around the door and his heart ached as he swung the hammer.

_She won't get to you this way._

_Good bye Thutrel._

_Good bye Uzfakuh_   
  


Thorin had no idea what was going on outside the Mountain and his blue eyes widened in surprise when Nori and Ori came bolting into the throne room shouting about Spiders, and Orcs and that Bluebell was in labor on the steps to the Back Door. Oin, Ori and a few Women from Lake Town headed towards to the Hidden Hall while Thorin alerted Bard and they hatched a plan.

He gathered a small army of Iron Hill dwarves, Lake Men and the Company quickly, and then stepped out into something out of nightmares.

Spiders were everywhere and seemed to be coating everything in webs.

"We are going to need bigger axes." decided Gloin beside him.

"We are going to need fire." answered Nori.

Thorin nodded and looked to Bard who quickly dispatched his men to bring torches to light flaming arrows and whatever else they could think of.

His heart twinged painfully at the sight of the elves camp burning to the ground and kicked himself for not realizing something was amiss when the delegates hadn't arrived when they said they would.

  
Turns out Spiders are less a fan of fire than they were of the frigid rain pelting everyone and it seemed the Vala Ulmo was listening when one of the Men announced that observation the rain just stopped. Winter winds continued to whip around everything and dried up the water or helped it ice over depending on location. They endeavored to pick off the spiders as they fled but as they rounded the Mountain they met the Orcs and Goblins that were still trying to climb the stairs.

Dori was standing over a downed Bofur who was still attacking the knees of anything that got too close, Tharkun was a whirlwind of grey with his sword flashing and staff sending out bolts of light to blind beasties that normally lived underground. There were elves in mix all holding their own as they took out Orc after Orc with their arrows and others were on the ground spinning through the masses like deadly tornadoes. Thranduil was there on his elk cutting down any that dared get near him and Legolas wasn't far behind his father making short work of goblins that tried to attack the beast's legs.

Thorin felt his blood run cold when he spotted Dwalin on the door step battling the largest, ugliest spider that he knew he'd see in his nightmares and the Orc that rode it.  
_Where in the 7 circles of hell did that come from?_

   
He ran with the others shouting a fierce battle of **"DU BEKAR!"** and hope appeared on many of the faces. Dwalin didn't seem to heed the help arriving as he dodged the wicked stinger of the giant arachnid and the swipes the Orc was making with a wicked scimitar.

They cut through the masses like a hot knife through butter and it was obvious that even the Orcs were tired as they fell to his blade. They would never retreat when their leader was still standing and attacking Dwalin so he felt no pity for slaying them one after another.

_Nasty Bastards how did they get so close?!_

 

Thorin reached Bofur and Dori first where they were on the first landing and cleared the rest of the Orcs near them before speaking to them quickly.

"Are you alright?" Both had shallow cuts that had stopped leaking blood long before he got there.

"Aye except for this," Bofur showed him the snapped off shaft of an arrow sticking up from the meat of the toy maker's thigh. "Damn thing kept me from helping Bluebell and the she-elf earlier. I cannot climb the steps with this stuck in me."

He winced in sympathy before Dori grabbed his arm in a tight grip, tension showing in the lines around the silver haired dwarf's eyes. "My sister, is she... is she alright?"

Thorin shook his head sadly "I don't know. Ori and Oin were on their way to her when we started this way."

Disappointment and worry radiated from Bluebell's oldest brother "At least Ori will be with her soon."

"ARGH FUCK!!"

A shout of pain jerked their attention up see Dwalin down on one knee with a dagger sticking from his shoulder.

"Did he just speak?" they asked in unison.

Thorin began running up the stairs taking them two at time when he could as he watched the wretched thing toy with Dwalin and soon his shield brother was bleeding from several shallow cuts while he cursed it khuzdul.

                                          

Dwalin felt tired.

Tired and worn down.

**"MURKHUN!"** Thorin's bellow made him smile up at Maug as she stared down at him with her evil black eyes, the pieces of metal shoved into her cheekbones glinting in the waning light as she drew her scimitar back.

"I will end you and then I will end your mate and child." she snarled as she back handed him with her other hand that somehow had metal shoved into it to form knuckle dusters of her own.

"Go to hell, Bitch." he roared back spraying her with his blood as the blade began to descend towards him. 

 

"NOOOOOOO!"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This amount of angst was achieved by listening to The Civil Wars, The Wailing Jenny's (Starlight) and Corey Taylor (Acoustic <3). 
> 
> Khuzdul  
> Uzfakuh~ (my greatest joy)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for how late this is.   
> Life has been crazy and I've had no time to write between kid wrangling and now we're moving.   
> I swear to god you never know how much crap you have until you have to pack into little boxes to move. My daughters have too much shit and it's all covered in glitter lol

Bluebell couldn't see anything whether it was from the darkness or the tears raining down from her eyes, she couldn't see.   
When she blinked to clear the tears she could make out the outline of Tauriel next to her and when she looked down she could see the light glint faintly off the remaining brass button on her coat that was wrapped her baby.   
Her daughter.   
  
_Dwalin's daughter.  
  
That he might never get to meet and hold._  
  
A new surge of tears welled up in her as she remembered Dwalin's face as he met her eyes for the last time. The rain running down his face couldn't hide the tears she knew were falling and his eyes were the soft grey of a dove's breast as he looked at them. Longing was written there and she thought for a moment that he was going to run in to join them; shutting the stone door behind him and they'd be together. But she knew the enemy had been too great and the danger to close. She understood in her heart why he did what he did but that didn't stop the pain that radiated with every beat.   
  
"Shhhh  Mellon, I'm sure he'll be fine. He'll come back to you."   
  
She nodded as she felt the truth in Tauriel's words and she snugged the baby closer to her. The little one had quieted down a while ago though she could feel the soft puffs of breath on her neck. She shivered sitting there in the dark and her thighs were sticky with what she assumed was blood and other fluids.   
"We- we should move."   
She felt Tauriel shift beside her "Aye, this damp isn't good for you or the little one."   
  
She was struggling to get her feet under her when noise from the opposite end of the tunnel made her freeze clutching the baby with both arms.   
"Tauri-"   
"Shhhh!" she could see the bigger outline of the elf creep forward in the dim light.   
  
  
" _I really thought we would have found them by now, Oin. Do you think they are closer to the door?"_ her brother's voice was a balm to her frayed nerves and she took a breath to call to them when the baby began to squirm.  _  
"Well lad it's hard to say how far she'd made it considering you said she's been in labor for quite some time."_ answered a unmistakably loud voice.   
The baby had apparently decided that she was not happy being in the dark still and cried her complaint loudly.   
_"Was that a baby?"_  
  
  
Ori thought he was going to pass out as he ran up the steps and into the hall that lead to the Back Door. All he wanted was to find Bluebell and know that his sister had survived. Every turn where they didn't find her and the elf maid was like a bolt in his heart as the worry burned through him.   
The Women behind them were whispering about all the complication that can happen with running in labor, exposure to the elements and what have you, and he wanted to shout at them to shut up but he knew their concern was well meant. He didn't know if Hobbit's could even have the same complications as Men or Dwarves for that matter. Bluebell had told him that they were very fertile which was obvious since she got pregnant just from one joining with Dwalin, and that they were very prolific having as many as 12 'faunts' as she called them in their child bearing years.   
The baby's cry was both thrilling and terrifying for him as he picked up the pace leading the others closer to the door. The Women began twittering excitedly behind him at the prospect of a baby and began to wonder after the mother.   
  
"Bluebell? Bluebell! Where are you?"   
  
"Ori? Oh Ori I'm down here! Tauriel it's my brother!"   
He almost had a heart attack as the elf stepped from the shadows beside him and he could only mutely nod a greeting to her.   
He could see Bluebell sitting against the wall not far from the actual door and he dropped to his knees beside her even as she worried at him to "watch his pants since there was fluids on the ground".   
" **Namadith** I do not care about my pants as long as you're alright. Are you?" he leaned his forehead against hers and breathed in the scent of her; of growing things, sunlight and baked goods. Now there was a new smell of something sweet and new that he imagined was the new member of his family.   
She nodded, knocking her forehead against his gently "I'm- we're alright. She just had to pick her own time to show up rather than when I would have liked her to arrive."   
"Her? I have a niece?" he squeaked peeking at the little thing wrapped in Bluebell's faded red jacket.   
She chuckled softly and he could hear the tears there "Yes, We- I have a daughter. Oh Ori have you heard anything about Dwalin?"  
His gut clenched and he wanted to hug Oin when he interrupted with a blanket and the statement that this "blasted hallway was not fit for Man nor Beast let alone a new babe."   
His sister sniffled before she agreed with the old Healer.   
"I need help standing." she whispered in his ear.   
  
He slipped his arms around them and stood making her squeal "Ori, what are you doing?! Put me down before you hurt yourself!"  
He allowed himself to chuckle as he strode past everyone "Nonsense you weigh next to nothing, Namad. I'm fine and this is the safest way to get you down from here."   
  
  
  
Oin let out a most undwarven coo as he checked over the little 'dwobbit' as Fili and Kili had coined it.   
She was smaller than any infant that he had ever handled, fitting neatly in both hands as she squirmed under his critical eye. Bluebell informed him that the little one was actually a touch big compared to Hobbit fauntlings when he commented that she was small pebble.   
The little lass was perfectly formed and as pink as you please, with a tiny rosebud for a mouth and wisps of black hair curling up from her scalp.   
When Oin had unwrapped her from her Mother's favorite jacket she had promptly relieved herself to the embarrassment of her Amad and the giggle of her Uncle.   
"Think nothing of it, my Dear," he laughed wiping off his stomach and slipping a clean blanket under the baby on the bed "At least we know her plumbing works!"   
The tired Hobbit gave a shaky laugh from where she occupied the neighboring bed even as her cheeks and ears blazed.   
  
  
"If I recall correctly I do believe Dwalin did something similar to the midwife that delivered him." chuckled Balin warmly from the door.   
He didn't hide the relief on his face at the sight of Bluebell lying back in the bed while Oin tutted over a very small being on the next one.   
"Oh Balin, I'm so happy to see you." breathed Bluebell as tears shined in her eyes.   
He limped across the room and took up the chair that Tauriel to lean against the wall.   
"Are you injured? What happened?"   
Bluebell was shifting as though to rise from the bed to help him and he didn't miss the grimace of discomfort on her face.   
"It's nothing, Bluebell. Do not worry about an old dwarf like me when you've been through such a harrowing experience. My injury is nothing."   
A derisive snort came from the healer who was bent over the baby still "Oh aye it's nothing if by 'nothing' you mean you almost lost your foot."   
He rolled his eyes at Oin as Bluebell let out a concerned squeak.  
"How is it when we want you to hear us you can't but the minute it's something we don't want your comment on you can hear perfectly?"   
"What's that? Perfect? Oh yes she is a perfectly healthy little mite! Looks nothing like her Da so far aside from her hair color."   
He caught Bluebell's eye as she giggled behind her hand "Of course he cannot hear me now."   
"Naturally." she agreed with a wink at him and a large yawn.  
He patted her free hand "You should get some rest."   
She shook her head violently "No, I can't. Not until I know Dwalin is alright. Have you heard anything?"   
He bowed his snowy head " I have not. I know that Thorin departed quite a few hours ago with the rest of the Company and quite a few Men but there has been no news."   
  
  
Bluebell felt her heart sink into her stomach with Balin's grave words and she swallowed to clear the lump in her throat.   
"Well no news is a good thing, right?"   
Balin gave her a weak smile which seemed to age him as he sat there "Aye,  **agnâtnana'."  
  
** "I could go."   
Bluebell startled from her thoughts at Tauriel's voice. She felt ashamed that she had forgotten the elf was leaning against the wall basically being ignored by all.   
"Oh Tauriel, I couldn't ask that."   
The red haired elleth straightened from the wall and walked to the foot of Bluebell's bed "I do not mind, Bluebell. If I did I wouldn't have offered."   
Common sense rang in her words and Bluebell felt like an idiot for thinking it was a hollow offer.   
"I would like that very much then if you could do that. If you could drag my _Cariad_ back here in one piece that would be much appreciated though if you swat him for tossing you I won't notice."   
A rare smile graced Tauriel's lips as she nodded and was gone from the room in a swirl of leather and red hair.   
  
"Now then perhaps you'd like to give this wee one a top up?" Oin brought the wriggling, grumping infant over to her and she looked up at him slightly confused.   
He gave a pained, pointed look at her breasts and then it clicked.   
"Oh! A-alright I'll try. I hadn't thought of this at all. I feel quite daft now." she murmured blushing while she fussed with pulling her top off. She looked at Balin who was politely looking the other way.   
Her nose wrinkled at the stale smell that came from the fabric and hoped she didn't smell strongly similar as she tossed the offending garment to the floor on the other side of her bed.   
"I'm ready."   
Oin placed the small bundle in her arms and she smiled to see that instead of her jacket the babe was now wrapped in a proper blanket that she suspected her youngest brother had made. The little one was turning an alarming shade of red and was grunting as she moved her head around as though seeking something.   
"Feed her, lass. She'll know what to do." Oin urged her.   
She hesitantly exposed her nipple and moved her daughter near it. The minute her nipple brushed the soft cheek of the infant she turned lightening fast and latched on drawing a high pitched "meep!" from Bluebell.   
Oin was beside her as he inspected how her nipple was in the fierce mouth of her child "Make sure her lip is curled down on the bottom. That's how you know she had a good deep latch and you hopefully won't blister." he instructed showing her how to lightly pull down on the tiny chin and the pain faded into just an insistent tugging on her breast.   
  
She became so absorbed that she didn't even notice that the males had become quiet until she looked up to see they had tears leaving silver tracks into their beards.   
"Beautiful sight, isn't it?" asked Balin paying no heed to the tears darkening his snowy beard.   
"Aye, nothing like seeing a mother and child bond like that." answered Oin with a slight quaver to his voice, his horn nowhere to be seen.   
  
  
{Yavanna and her sisters sighed at the sweetness as they watched Bluebell with her child.   
"So what happens now?" asked Tulkas from the other side where he was trying to act uninterested in the scene. She could tell by the pinkness of his cheeks that the large Vala was touched as well by the maternal love.   
Yavanna met Mahal's eyes across the clearing where he was reclining in the grass beside Manwe; she knew that look in his eyes and rolled hers in response.   
A breeze flitted through the clearing and shifted locks of his auburn hair while they had their silent conversation.   
"I think Dwalin has proved himself and is forgiven." she stated, her voice ringing out like the toll of a bell.   
"What about Bluebell? Will she fade?" questioned Orome from his position beside his steed Nahar, stroking the beast's gorgeous white mane.  
She trailed her fingers through the water to bring the image of Bluebell snuggling her child back into view.   
"She shall flourish unless Dwalin perishes. She has forgiven him already and has nothing but love in her heart."}  
  
  
  
  
Thorin caught Dwalin as he fell, the scimitar clattering to the ground beside them, the orc's hand severed at the wrist still clinging to the hilt while the owner screamed insults behind them while grasping the bleeding stump.  
**"You will pay for that!"**  
  
It was hard to tell how far in the blade had sliced and Thorin wasn't about to start probing it at that moment.  
"Thorin!" Dwalin gaped looking up at him like he thought he was imagining him, silver eyes wide in shock.   
"You can speak?"   
Dwalin flashed him a grim smile "Aye, guess Yavanna has forgiven me."   
He stood and pulled his best friend to his feet before turning to face Maug.   
**"I will slit your love's throat and make you watch as her life drains away!"** she promised them with a nasty smile as minions slipped over the cliffs edge behind her.  
"Like Hell you will, you twisted bitch!" Dwalin roared back at her.   
"Don't, I think she'd baiting you." he laid a hand on Dwalin's shoulder only for it be ignored while the orc hissed more vile threats.   
**"I will dash your child's head on a rock and make you drink her blood!"** she promised baring her teeth, eyes lit with a manic light.   
Thorin watched as Dwalin straightened his spine and pulled the dagger from his shoulder, tossing it to the ground and picking up his hammer.  
 _He can't seriously be taking the bait, is he?  
_  
"Dwalin... DWALIN!"   
Quicksilver eyes cut to him as the bald warrior squared off "WHAT, THORIN?"   
  
He opened his mouth to tell him he was being an idiot when Dwalin shook his head and strode towards the hand-less  _female_ Orc.  
_I did not know there were female Orcs.  
  
__But it has tits so must be female?  
  
_ " **Murkhun** what are you doing?" he shouted as Dwalin ran at the foe.    
"Ending this" was the only response he received.   
Thorin felt like he was froze to the spot as he watched his best friend dodge around the Orc and smash in the head of the giant spider.   
  
  
Dwalin felt a grim satisfaction as the head of the disgusting spider caved under his blow while Maug screamed in outrage. Gore and blood sprayed around him and on him, painting the ground under it as well and he couldn't help the feral smile that creased his face.   
  
Goblins surrounded him with Thorin on the outside trying to hack his way to him; they were cut off from each other and as soon as one goblin fell another took it's place. Maug's minions seemed endless and he was beginning to feel hopeless when the rock under him shifted. He looked down to seem a small crack running under him as the weight of everyone was shifting the stones.   
_That would do it.  
  
__Cut off the head of the snake and the body dies.  
  
__I drop the cliff and it'll kill her. Then everyone will be safe including Bluebell and the baby.  
  
_ "THORIN STOP!" he bellowed and for once the King listened to him, turning to look at him with wide blue eyes. Their color deepened as he seemed to figure out that Dwalin was about to do something he wouldn't like. He nodded at his friend and watched as horror widened those beautiful eyes as he put all his remaining strength behind his hammer, slamming into the rock between his feet and hearing the satisfying groan of the rock as it began to let go.   
"NO!" he could hear Thorin's baritone scream over the growing roar of the rocks slipping away.   
**"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"** screamed Maug as the rocks left from beneath her feet.   
"Protected my family." was the only answer he gave her as he was suddenly free falling towards to ground below.   
  
Pain bloomed in his back as the air burst from his lungs on impact and the last thing he saw was Maug's face exploding as it connected with a huge boulder not far from him. Blackness ate the edge of his vision and he shut his eyes.   
  
He never expected to open his eyes again if he was honest and definitely not opening them with the sun shining overhead while he lay on warm grass. He threw a hand up to block out the glaring light and was stunned to see his hands were still scrapped up.  
He blinked the spots from them as he struggled to sit up; his body screaming in protest after the abuse that had been heaped upon it so recently.   
  
First thing he noticed was the grass underneath him; it was softer than even the grass of the Shire and as green an emerald, each blade looked as though it had been crafted from the finest stones. Next he noticed the clear blue sky and again the sunshine that was pleasantly warming him through. Lastly he noticed the very tall beings that were studying him from afar and then the female that was kneeling a few feet from him.   
His eyes shifted from one to the other until finally he settled on the one closest to him; she was beautiful kneeling there in the soft grass with hair like sunshine through honey puddling around her knees and skin like ivory. Her eyes were a glittering green so similar to Bluebell's that it sent a piercing pain through his heart.  
_Bluebell.  
  
__I'll never see her again.  
  
_ He drew a stuttered breath as he drew his thoughts back to the present; he wouldn't shed tears in front of strangers and thinking of what he had lost would certainly pull a tear or two to his eye.   
The staring was making him uncomfortable and he met the gaze of a red bearded Man with a glare of his own before the being looked away.   
The female cleared her throat "Dwalin, son of Fundin, Cariad of Bluebell Baggins and father of Amethyst Rose. You are in the Gardens of Lorien incase you were wondering where you were."  
He felt his jaw drop and for the life of him he couldn't shut his mouth at the Lady's statement.  
 _The Garden's of Lorien.  
  
_ _Where the Valar go to rest with Irmo?  
  
_ _How in Yavanna's tits did I get here!?  
_    
"You gave him his voice back, right?" asked one of the beings that was shorter than the others and Dwalin watched her begin to dance amongst the daisies. It sent another pulse of pain through him to think of Bluebell dancing like that and that he would never see his daughter dance freely.   
_Wait a minute?  
_  
_She took my voice?  
  
__My daughter's name is Amethyst Rose?  
  
What in Durin's name is going on here?  
  
_ "You know I did." the golden woman snapped "We saw him speak with Thorin."   
That snapped him out of his gawping like a lad that wasn't even of Battle Age "Wait a minute. You saw me speaking with Thorin? How do you know my name? How... What the?  **Fuzak!"**  
The stream of question jammed in his throat until frustration made him curse his clumsy feeling tongue, he tore the head off the daisy that bloomed closest to him and crushed it like his heart felt crushed.    
  
He struggled to his feet, his shoulder screaming as he used it to push up from the soft grass and he felt it start to bleed again under his sun dried tunic.   
The red bearded Man stepped forward this time and stared down at him. He pulled a glower that Thorin would have been proud of as he met the being's earth brown eyes.   
_What is going on here?  
  
I thought I would wake up in Mahal's halls not some weed eaters garden with a bunch of Big Folk staring at me and apparently spying on me before I died.  
  
__I thought dying was like going to sleep!  
  
__Who are these being?_  
  
"There is no need to curse, Dwalin." the Man's voice rumbled like a rock slide as he spoke and Dwalin felt his anger flare higher at being chided like a tween.   
  
"Really? Give me a reason not to!" he began to pace "I don't know where I am! I mean I do but not really, I don't know who any of you are!"  
He started pacing and kicking the daisies that were growing near him "I am very possibly, well more than likely dead which means that I will never see my brother, Thorin, the Princes," his voice cracked " Never get to hold Bluebell again and I will never get the chance to meet my daughter."  
He crossed his arms over his chest and didn't care how petulant it looked as he leveled a glare at the kneeling being "I didn't even know her name until she "he pointed at the woman still sitting in the grass "told me!"  
The beautiful woman made a move towards him but he stopped her with a hand motion "No. I know the decision I made when I broke the cliff with my hammer but I thought when I shut my eyes that was it! And instead I find myself in a beautiful garden with beings that have no business being this tall and the knowledge that I'll never see any of them again."  
He could feel the tears now on his cheeks and he didn't care as he stared at his feet.   
  
"Brothers, Sisters, we have not been very good hosts considering we have forgotten the very first step of hosting someone."  
  
A soft voice broke the hush that his outburst had created and he looked up to see who the owner was. She was as tall as the others but where they wore colors she was clothed in only grey down to the grey hood on her head that inky black tresses spilled from down her front. The grey clothing made him think of Tharkun and he found that he would miss that old wizard as well.   
She stepped in front of him and he found himself meeting eyes that were as grey as a dove's breast set in skin the color of snow. She extended her hand to him "I am Nienna. You probably have heard of me as... "  
"The Lady of Mercy." he cut her off. She gave him a small smile and he remembered then that she was also the Lady of Weeping and Mourning.   
The feeling of realization hitting him felt very similar to the time Kili had hid an egg in his helmet before training and he had crushed it against his bald head.   
  
New eyes took in the taller beings that had drew around him and the Man with the red beard was sitting by the honeyed haired woman; they both gave him a small smirk as he stared.   
"No." he whispered and they nodded in response.   
He started with the woman in the grass "You- you took my voice! You're Yavanna and that would make you..."   
He dropped to his knees  "Mahal, creator of the Dwarves."   
A booming laugh made him jump and he lifted his head to look at Mahal.   
"Do not bow to me, Dwalin. I did not create the dwarrow to bow to me! If I had wanted that I wouldn't have fashioned you from stone." he rumbled.   
Dwalin climbed back to his feet with a small hiss of pain as the wound on his ribs began to burn.   
A new voice lilted near him "Now I have been a wretched host! Here you are injured and I have done nothing about it."   
He turned to see a new female with hair the color of gold wearing heather grey robes draw near him.  
"Please take off your tunic." she asked smiling down at him.   
He eyed her warily before cutting a glance at Mahal, who gave a small laugh and nod.   
So he shrugged and bit back the groan of pain as he pulled his tunic over his head.   
  
  
Bluebell felt like she was going to be sick as Thorin stood at the foot of her bed. Hope, dread, curiosity, sadness and confusion swirled in the pit of stomach making it feel like feel hot and sloshy like the trip down the river had.   
"What do you mean he fell but you cannot find his body?" she whispered as she held Amethyst close to her.  
The King's adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, looking everywhere but at her "I don't know, Bluebell."   
He moved to sit on the side of her bed and took her free hand in his warm calloused one.   
His blue eyes were earnest as they met hers "I honestly don't know. I watched him break the ledge and they all fell. We went through the rocks and found Maug with her head smashed in but no Dwalin."   
Her mouth was suddenly dry "So-so what does that mean? Could he have survived the drop?"   
She hated the hopeful note her question ended on and she waited for Thorin to give her his "How stupid can you get" looks but he mirrored a sliver of the hope she felt.   
"I've seen dwarrow survive longer drops than that in the mines." Bofur volunteered from the bed next to hers as Oin bandaged his thigh.   
The toy maker had been very fortunate that the arrow hadn't hit bone and the removal went smoothly.   
"Don't they usually have to land in water or something soft that to happen though?" asked Dori from his spot between the beds.   
Bofur shrugged as he shot Dori a dark look "Not always."   
  
She wanted to believe it was possible that Dwalin had walked away from it all and not been captured by the retreating Orcs but the hope left a bitter taste in her mouth. She wasn't sure what she wanted to believe and she found her thoughts getting darker when Kili broke her revere.   
"Can- can I hold the baby?" his dark brown eyes barely contained his excitement as he tried not to bounce in his spot at the foot of her bed.   
She smiled at him and nodded.   
He was by her side in a flash, hip bumping Thorin out of the way unceremoniously to land in the floor with a loud "Uff!"   
He cradled the baby like she was made of the finest china and looked terrified to even breath as he stared down at her.   
"She's so perfect, Bluebell." he whispered with awe coloring his voice.   
It was all she could do to nod as he slowly stood cradling the babe to go show his blond brother who was leaning against the wall still favoring his leg.   
 _It should be Dwalin holding her like that._  
  
Tears burned her eyes and she couldn't stop the sniffle that slipped out.   
Thorin looked as sad as she did and he patted her hand from his new seat on the floor beside her bed "I will find him, Bluebell. I promise." 


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dis arrives and proves that Thorin isn't the only thick one in the family.  
> The Valar are working out a plan to send Dwalin back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still completely blown away by the kudos and comments. Thank you all so much! 
> 
> I'm sorry this is so late compared to how often I updated in the past. I moved my family across the city we live in at the end of February (I live in WI) and holy crap did that suck. Piece of advice don't try to move in 5 days with 2 kids and a spouse that works night shift. You will not have a good time.

Dwalin woke up pissed off.   
Pissed at the sun glaring down at him.   
Pissed at the soft grass that was almost nicer than furs for sleeping.   
Even the daisies were pissing him off. But what pissed him off the most were the twittering, whispering Valar that were gathered around a stew pot.   
  
There was no rhythm or reason to how the days passed in Irmo's realm and that was pissing him off as well.   
His wounds had been healed, he had been fed and he had expected to be sent packing back to Erebor, back home, back to Bluebell and their child. Instead he was told to rest and then to rest some more.   
He was a warrior! Not some soft Tailor (don't tell Dori he said that) that needed to rest after a little scuffle.   
The female Valar all giggled and whispered as they watched him stretch and stalk around the clearing in the middle of the Gardens of Lorien.   
_I can't be expected to lie around like some treeshagger.  
  
_ His muscles burned and he smiled as he went through his stretches before beginning his forms. His muscles remembered the forms they had been doing for over a century and his mind began to wander.   
Memories flowed past his minds eye as his large body flowed through the paces of war hammer training.   
_His brother laughing with him near a campfire.  
  
Bluebell smiling at him in Beorn's garden.   
  
Thorin sparring against him in the sun; laughing as they taunted each other.   
  
__Bluebell standing naked in the stream whispering his name.  
  
__Pebble sized Fili strutting around Thorin's Halls after he thought he'd moved Dwalin's war hammer by himself (He'd nudged it with his foot).  
  
__Bluebell kissing him in the moonlight and whispering sweet things in Hobbitish for his ears only.  
  
__Kili beaming at him as Dwalin presented him with his Archery bead and telling him he was proud of him.  
  
__Bluebell laughing as he felt their child stirring in her womb.  
  
__Bluebell clutching their daughter to her breast as he protected them.  
  
__Her tear streaked face as he shut them in the dark, knowing they'd likely never see each other again.  
  
_ Anger and pain course through his veins; he strips off his sweat soaked tunic and grabs his hammer with a roar.   
He wants to go back, he  _needs_ to go back to her, to tell her everything that had been trapped on his clumsy tongue. He  _needed_ to see his child, to hold her at least once, to see her tiny features, to  _know_ her even a little bit.   
_Maybe give her something to remember her Adad by.  
  
_ His heart clenched and he swung his hammer in an arch to destroy a cluster of daisies, hoping to impart some of his pain to the annoying little flowers.   
All of his attempts at finding out what they were going to do with him had been met with silent stares and empty platitudes of "Just wait and see" "give it time."   
Mean while time was skipping along with his family probably thinking he was dead, Bluebell's heart breaking more every day that she doesn't know what actually happened to him since there was no body to be found and he was losing so much precious time with his daughter that she would probably be walking before he ever saw her again.   
He was angry, enraged, frustrated, and fed up with the Valar treating him like a child or worse a pet.   
  
  
Yavanna tried not to wince as Dwalin squashed another bunch of daisies with his hammer before turning her attention back to her sibling's whispered argument.   
_"We need to send him back!"  
__"How? We should just keep him here!"  
__"He clearly doesn't want to be here!"  
__"Isn't he dead? How can we send a dead man back?"  
__"Mandos, is he dead?"_    
_"I deal with elves! Ask Mahal! He created them for Eru's sake."  
"Someone please figure out something! He's killing my plants!"   
"I don't think he's dead..."   
"Oh for fucks sake."   
"Language! Honestly you two."   
"Uuuugh he's not dead. I do not feel the need to weep for his death just for his broken heart."   
"He's definitely not dead. I would know and it's not foretold in my weaving."   
  
_ "OY! If you lot have something to say to me how about you say to my face instead of whispering like a bunch of tree shagging elves!" the dwarven warrior roared at them brandishing his twin axes.   
"Oh he did not just compare us to the elves!"   
Yavanna watched as her brother Tulkas bristled while stretching to his true mammoth height "What did you just call me?"   
Dwalin drew up to his full considerably less impressive height and shouted "You heard me  _varudhghalut mahzâyungâl!"  
  
_ They all whipped around to Mahal who was slowly turning the same shade of red as his beard while he glowered at his child, his creation that was throwing a truly epic tantrum attacking the bushes that ringed the clearing.   
"What did he just call me?" laughed the golden haired Vala.   
"You really don't want to know. He's just angry." groaned Mahal as he pressed his fingertips against his brow.   
Tulkas slapped his muscular thigh and chuckled "So the little dwarf wants to fight!"   
Nessa spun to her husband's side and looked up into his laughing face "You're not seriously thinking of engaging him are you? You could kill him!"   
A smile split his golden beard "Of course I am! He's clearing bristling for a fight and I'll be the one to give it to him."   
She put a small hand on her hip and arched a  brow at him "But he's a dwarf and you're a God. We didn't save him just for you to kill him before we can figure out how to send him back."   
His smile took on a condescending twist "I will not kill him. Just tire him out so he'll stop shouting and smashing daisies."   
It was very obvious that Nessa did not believe him as she planted both hands on her hips before turning to the eldest brother lounging in the grass "Manwe, a little help?"  
Manwe lifted a shoulder in a majestic shrug "Let them fight. If Tulkas is sure he won't kill him-"  
"I'm sure!"  
"Then let him tire Dwalin out so we can have a bit of peace. He's so loud for something so little."   
" **I CAN HEAR YOU!"** said dwarf roared from across the clearing.   
  
Yavanna watched her younger brother jog across to meet Dwalin and the warrior immediately threw down his weapons to mirror the stance that Tulkas had assumed.  
"This is not going to end well. Where is Este?" she asked as Tulkas began to grapple with Dwalin.  
The dwarf was actually doing alright for the moment, using his size to his advantage as he dodged the Vala's swings and attempts to grab him. It was clear to the others that Dwalin's punches weren't really phasing Tulkas and just made the large being laugh which in turn made the dwarf even angrier.   
The grey clad female drew up beside her to watch the pair circle each other, Dwalin was sweating and beginning to pant while Tulkas was actually a little flushed but that was it.   
Tulkas grabbed Dwalin's shoulder and even from afar they could hear to "pop" as something either broke or dislocated but before anyone could shout Dwalin landed a sharp downward kick right in Tulkas' groin. The males around them all cringed as Tulkas seemed to freeze before dropping to his knees so hard the ground shook. There was a split second where Dwalin looked proud of himself and in the instance Tulkas threw out his fist to catch the mortal in the chest; the hit launched the smaller being from the Garden, landing him out of sight with a loud crash.   
"Mahal's Balls!" shouted Yavanna as she ran out of the clearing "Tulkas, you IDIOT!"   
"HEY LEAVE MY BALLS OUT OF THIS!" she heard her husband shout as she tried to locate the hopefully not dead dwarf in the undergrowth.   
"Yavanna, he's over here!" shouted Este from her left.   
  
Dwalin felt like he'd been kicked in the chest by one of Dain's war ram's as he laid there dazed in the bushes. It hurt to breath and his right arm didn't seem to want to move; he struggled to open his eyes and when he did all he saw was the scattering of stars in the sky above him. They looked like they were in the same configuration as the freckles that were sprinkled across Bluebell's nose.   
"Oh _Thutrel, I_  miss you." 

Bluebell shivered in the cool spring breeze as she stood at the gates of Erebor, the wiggling bundle in her arms made her smile as she held her daughter tighter. For a split second she thought she had heard a voice whispering in the wind but when she looked around there was no one speaking nearby.  
  
"They're almost here! I can see Amad at the head!" Kili fairly squealed with excitement, bouncing on the balls of his feet like a jack rabbit.

  
Princess Dis, daughter of Thrain, granddaughter of Thror, Princess Under the Mountain was every bit as impressive as Kili and Fili had been telling her. There was a striking resemblance between siblings as Thorin embraced his sister once formalities were aside but when her sons besieged her, the happiness that shone through made Bluebell's heart ache. 

Dwalin's disappearance weighed heavily on her heart and she struggled to stay positive as each day the scouting parties came back with nothing. It was nearing on two monthes with nothing, no foot prints, no armor left behind, no body and no sign of what might have happened to her _Cariad_.

_Would Dwalin be that happy to see Amethyst?_

_What if he never comes back?_

_  
He's not dead, I'd feel it in my heart._

_  
_ _What if he doesn't want to come back?_

 

{"Oh we cannot let her think that is the case!" Yavanna shrieked covering her face with her hands.   
"We have to send him back as soon as possible!" insisted Mahal looking panicked.

Varda and Manwe looked up from where they were whispering in the grass.

"We think we have a plan."}

 

"So this is the Hobbit."

Bluebell looked up to meet blue eyes so similar to Thorin's that she almost asked if he'd hit his head again before she realized that the beard was longer though it only ran along the jaw line and was much more decorated than the King's.

Kili and Fili popped up like bookends on either side of her, each throwing an arm over her shoulder in the process. They jostled her so much that Rose let out a cry of complaint from where she slept on her mother's chest. Those blue eyes cut downwards and widened in surprise "You have a child?"

She nodded as Kili crowed "Yup! Cutest little dwobbit you'll ever see, Amad."  
Bluebell couldn't help sagging a little in the hold of the princes as those eyes left her to look at the youngest one "Dwobbit?"  
"Half Dwarf and half Hobbit." answered Fili while he reached over to pull the edge of the blanket down to reveal the baby's slightly pointed ears and fuzzy sideburns.  
Dis seemed to freeze before pinning her sons with a dagger sharp look "Which one of you-"

Rose decided then that she did not appreciate being peeked at and voiced her cries loudly.

"Oh baby it's ok." Bluebell bounced her but the little one's cries just grew louder and Bluebell felt her face getting warmer and the tips of her ears heated.  
"Here let me have her." came Balin's gentle voice from behind her.  
"Thank you." she mouthed as she slid the bundle into his arms.  
Kili and Fili seemed frozen before their mother as her unfinished question hung in the air between them.

Thorin cleared his throat "Ahem, I think this is best saved for a more private time. Dis, are you hungry? Bluebell makes the best tarts."  
The look Dis gave her older brother was unreadable for Bluebell but it was one that Thorin was clearly used to as he smiled before looping his arm through his sister's and steering her up the stairs to the royal wing.   
  
  


"You're joking!"

Thorin watched the Hobbit's spine stiffen at his sister's bark of disbelief. For whatever reason Dis was having a hard time believing that the little babe held by Balin was Dwalin's child or maybe it was the fact that Dwalin had a child with a Hobbit. Either way Bluebell had been walking lightly while serving up a lovely tea with scones and lemon tarts to everyone gathered in the shared kitchen.

Laughter still danced in Dis' eyes as she looked around the room at those gathered, none of which were joining her in laughter.

"Wait, wait so you're telling me that Dwalin actually coupled with this Halfling and made a child? A daughter, no less. I call shenanigans! Tell me truly who the father is; One of my sons? Or is it you, Thorin?"

His cheeks burned as he opened his mouth to answer her when a crisp voice cut him off "What is so hard to believe that I could have a child with Dwalin?"

He was pleased to his sister jump a little when Bluebell's question came from behind her.

"Well honestly it's just so preposterous!" Dis laughed turning to face the little female.

Bluebell had her hands on her hips and did not look like she found any of this funny.

"Really?"

Thorin stopped his tea cup a breath from his lips and cut his eyes to his nephews. He knew that tone and it was not a good tone; it was the tone Bluebell had used when she had Kili using her brassier for a slingshot and that had ended with him catching cooking pot to the temple.

Dis snorted unladylike as she sipped her tea "Of course. Dwalin prefers men for one and the Dwarrowdams that he fancied back in the day looked nothing like you. No offense."

Now Balin seemed to be getting upset, so much so that he handed the baby to Dori before moving to stand beside Bluebell.

"Really Dis? This is how you're going to speak to Dwalin's One?" Balin fixed the Princess with a disapproving glower that seemed to deflate her a little.

"I'm sorry, Balin. What? Did none of you know that Dwalin was gay?"

Thorin groaned and rubbed a hand over his eyes.

Of course she would think this was about Dwalin's sexuality.

"Dis, none of them care that Dwalin spent time with other males."

The chorus of "Ayes" from the Company seemed to make Dis look a little sheepish before a knowing smile curled her lips.

"Oh I know. The Halfling's child is a bas-" that sentence would never be finished as Bluebell's skillet (returned by Gandalf of all people) connected with the side of Dis' head, dropping the princess where she sat.

 

Bluebell stood there looking from the downed Dwarrowdam to the skillet in her hand then to Thorin and back again. Her mouth was moving like a fish out of water before she finally found her voice to sputter out an apology.

"Oh sweet Yavanna's toes I'm so sorry, Thorin! I- I don't know what came over me! She... she just wouldn't listen and she wouldn't shut up! And then- and then when she almost called Rosie a 'bastard. And she wouldn't stop calling me 'Halfling'! Something just snapped in me. I'm so sorry, Thorin but honestly she had it coming and I know I shouldn't have hit her. She was just making me so mad, and there's so much going on I just can't handle someone calling Rosie's parentage into question right now. Not that you wouldn't or won't make a great Adad but not for me. AND Kili, you're so sweet but you make me think of a nephew or younger cousin. Fili, you're lovely but not my type. Oh Mahal's hairy balls I've just made a mess of this whole thing haven't I?" 

He was pretty sure that the poor lass would have kept her rambling apology going if Dis hadn't groaned at that moment “ _ **Rum gabura**_ what just hit me?"  
"That, Amad would be Bluebell. She doesn't take kindly to having her child insulted or being called a Halfling for she is half of nothing." Kili informed his Mother with a dark look in his usually smiling eyes.  
Dis turned to look at the Hobbit where she stood between Balin and Dori, and nodded "You are definitely Dwalin's One. My apologies, Mistress Baggins for being so rude."

Surprise drew her brows up for just a second before Thorin saw her nod her acceptance before taking her child back from her brother.

"So where is Dwalin, anyways?"

 

Dwalin groaned as he opened his silver eyes again and was blinded by a brilliant sun overhead yet again.

"He's awake! Tulkas, you are so lucky you didn't kill him!" squealed a voice so shrill it could have cracked granite.

"I said I was SORRY! He almost crushed my balls! It was a reflex!" he heard the giant Valar growl in what sounded like a pout.

He rubbed a hand over his gritty feeling eyes and was surprised that nothing hurt so far when he moved; when he removed his hand there was a face above him. It was the dancing Vala, the one that spun around the daisies and laughed with the butterflies. She had a wreath of flowers crowning her copper colored mane and her eyes were the same color brown as Bofur's; a brown like warm oak in the summer, a brown that made you think of freshly baked bread. Her eyes even twinkled with mirth like the toy maker's and it made his heart feel heavy while he thought of Bofur hopefully caring for Bluebell still.

"You have silver eyes!" she exclaimed before retreating from his view.

Before he could really decide if it annoyed him that she had noticed there was a hand gripping his that pulled him to sitting.

"So. Many. Tattoos!" she breathed and he jumped as a warm finger began tracing the design on his scalp and down his neck; it was then that he realized that his tunic was still missing and he felt very exposed with the Vala touching him.

"Honey, stop petting the dwarf."

"But he has so many tattoos!" she whined from behind him as she traced the runes that proclaimed him a protector of the line of Durin and also stated that he was descendant of Durin as well.

"Tattoos do not mean you can touch him all over!" growled her husband.

_I don't mind, honestly. Not that I'm going to say that though._

_Sounds like he's getting jealous._

  
He gave the Tulkas a smug smirk as Nessa circled him still tracing the designs inked into his skin and the big Man looked torn between laughing and glowering at the male his spouse was touching.

When Nessa went to touch his soul mark though he stopped her with a hand blocking the curious fingers.

"But that one is the prettiest!" she pouted giving him doe eyes that could give Kili a run for his money.

He just shook his head and stood.

"Where is my tunic?"  
  
"Over here, Dwalin son of Fundin."   
He was surprised to see Tulkas holding out the garment to him and he took it cautiously, eyeing the larger man wearily. The Vala held up his hands as Dwalin stepped back a few paces to pull it over his head.  
"How do you feel, son of Fundin?"   
He felt the new length of his beard and mustache before turning to the speaker with a black look on his face; he was pleased to see Este's light grey eyes widen at his expression.   
With a roll of his shoulders and a stretch to show that there was no lingering damage he answered "Fine aside from the fact that I have been here far too long for my liking. I wish to go home immediately. I don't know why you have involved yourselves in my like but-"   
"Why to save your race of course." interrupted Yavanna pertly from where she stood near the cauldron. The others gathered around nodded in agreement while Mahal just shook his head.   
"Excuse me?" he shook his head.   
_Did I hit my head?  
  
__What in all of Arda is she talking about?  
  
__How could I possibly be used to save my race?  
_ He knew the answer the minute the question popped into his mind.   
_Bluebell.  
  
Durin's beard is this about her?   
  
Did they force us together?   
  
Does she really love me?   
  
Was it all a lie to get us to make a baby?  
  
_ Mahal had stepped closer to him as the questions chased themselves through his head.   
"Dwalin I know what you're thinking right now and you need to know that it wasn't like that." The Big Man held up a hand as if nearing a skittish pony and Dwalin couldn't help feeling a little proud that they were being so cautious around him.   
Large arms crossed his chest as he squared off glaring at his Maker "And how do you know what I'm thinking?"   
The look his posturing earned him from Mahal was one very reminiscent of his father and it was all he could do to not roll his eyes like a teen.   
"You are wondering if what happened between you and Bluebell was 'Our' fault and if we just used you as pawns to achieve our desires."   
Black brows hiked up his forehead to where his hairline used to be as he looked at Mahal in a new light.   
"Aye."   
The Smith shook his great head and knelt to look Dwalin in the eye "The connection and emotions were there all along. All we did was give you a nudge in the right direction.."   
"Or mute you if you were just being thick!" laughed Tulkas while his wife face palmed.   
Mahal blushed a little at the mention of that "I swear I did that when I thought there was no other option and Bluebell was going to be lost to us."   
He nodded his bald head and motioned for the God to continue.   
"We had nothing to do with her being your One and we in no way forced your intimacy. That was all you. The only other things we did was Yavanna's hand in your soul mark and Irmo sending you into the memories."   
  
The ice water that had settled in his stomach thawed and he mulled over everything he had learned. One question would just not leave him be "How is this supposed to help the Dwarrow?"   
"By aiding you with Hobbit fertility, of course." smiled Yavanna.   
He felt ill "Is Bluebell supposed to reproduce with everyone?" he ground out as saliva flooded his mouth. The thought of his sweet little _Thutrel_ laying with another did violent things to his stomach.   
Everyone's eyes flew wide and began a chorus of "No, no, NO! Absolutely NOT!"   
He sagged in relief as they all stopped chattering at once.   
"No. We hope that once others learn that Dwarrow and Shirelings can reproduce easily together that others of your race will see if their One is amongst the Halflings. Plus that once your offspring reaches maturity they will not have an issue finding their One nor reproducing if they wish."   
_Alright that makes sense and is actually a decent plan.  
_ He informed the gathered Tall Folk that before turning the conversation back to his want of returning to said One.   
The lost look he was receiving from most was not giving him much hope.   
"We have a plan and it should work without fail."   
The group parted to let a Tall Man in blue robes with eyes the same blue as the sky step forward with a Woman with hair the color of starlight following. They stopped in front of him and Dwalin felt his breath catch as he met eyes almost the same color as his own; the Vala smiled at him and her eyes twinkled like there were stars caught in them.   
He stared at them, he knew it was rude and that Balin would chide him if he knew that his little brother was staring at Valar but manners be damned he couldn't remember their names!   
"I am Manwe."   
"I am called Varda."  
_Fuck me the King and Queen of the Valar!  
  
_ He bowed low to them finally recalling some of the etiquette Balin tried to beat into his head "Dwalin, son of Fundin, at your service."   
"I think it is we, who are at your service this time, dear dwarf." smiled Varda and he stared some more as the light in her eyes shifted to reflect the color of her midnight blue robes; he would have sworn there were stars winking at him in their now dark inner circles.   
Manwe cleared his throat and gave Dwalin a cross look for staring at his wife for so long.   
Silence seemed to stretch between them filling the clearing before Yavanna stepped forward "Honestly! So are you going to share this plan with us or stand there trying to incinerate Dwalin for being caught in the stars of Varda's eyes?"   
It was an odd sight seeing the King of the Valar blush and look like a child being caught doing something naughty.   
Varda sighed "Alright I will tell you our plan."   
She turned so that all would hopefully hear her as she laid out the details for sending Dwalin back to his family in one piece. "There is a Blue Moon coming and it will be landing on a Equinox. Between Manwe and I, we will be able to make a tear and drop Dwalin back near Erebor."   
A feeling that he had not felt in far too long bloomed hot in his chest as he digested the news; Hope, hope was blooming there in his heart.   
"Oh you mean the one landing on the Summer Solstice?" chirped Nessa.  
Dwalin felt like Tulkas had just hit him in the stomach "Summer Solstice? I haven't been here that long have I?"   
Irmo looked saddened as he explained "Time is fluid here. It moves as it pleases and we have very little control over it."   
He swallowed the lump in his throat "That's awesome. I've been gone nigh on 2 months then? Bluebell must be beside herself thinking that I've run off. Is there any way to let her know that I'm alright?"   
  
A staring contest seemed to be going on between Mahal, Yavanna, Manwe and Irmo for what felt like hours before Irmo turned back to him and nodded.   
"I can send you to her in a dream... as soon as she goes to sleep. I can't guarantee how long I can keep you there but you should be able to get a quick message to her."   
  
He wandered the Gardens for a time and then found himself watching clouds drift by while he waited for Irmo to tell him it was time.   
"I'm sorry."   
That voice again; he had no clue how Yavanna kept sneaking up on him, she was as bad as Bluebell. Laughter rumbled in his throat and it felt good as it spilled from him mouth until he was rolling with it.   
Dashing tears from his eyes revealed the Lady of the Earth looking at him like he was crazy.   
"It's nothing, my lady. Why are you apologizing to me?"   
She twirled a daisy in her fingers and as he watched the petals seemed to grow larger until it was big enough to offer shade to the Vala.   
"I brought you here against your will and with no real way to send you back. I just didn't want to see Bluebell weeping and fading over your dead body. I love my children so much and she's been through so much I acted without thinking."   
"I appreciate and accept your apology even though it's not necessary. I owe you for saving my life even if it is irritating waiting for a way back. I understand why you did it."   
  
  
  
"It's time."  
  
  
Bluebell collapsed into her bed and tried to stifle the tears that were burning behind her eyes. She pulled Dwalin's cloak around her and curled into a little ball. Dori, Ori and Bofur had volunteered to keep the baby this night and she intended to catch up on her sleep. Dis' questions burned in her brain along with the stories and memories they had all shared once the Princess was over the shock of him being gone.   
The little Hobbit's heart ached and she sent up silent prayers to Yavanna and Aule for any kind of answer on where her _Cariad_ was.   
Sleep slipped in on silent feet, claiming her as she offered up more prayers for the return of her Love.   
  
Bluebell blinked and looked around.   
She was standing under the big Oak tree behind Bag End and she felt like she was waiting on something but for the life of her she couldn't remember what.   
  
_**"Thutrel."**_  
She froze, her heart racing.   
_I know that voice.  
  
__No... could he really be here?  
  
_ She turned to see Dwalin standing a few feet from her, the sun drifting downwards behind him. He looked exactly like he had when they were in Mirkwood together (the 2nd time).   
Her big feet ate up the distance between them until she stood so close she could smell him.   
The want to touch him was almost unbearable but the fear that he would dissolve into smoke was just as strong.   
Dwalin seemed to sense her fear and he reached out with a large hand to caress her cheek. She felt the callouses there on his fingers, and the bumps of the leather straps that held his knuckle dusters on, and she could hear his breathing hitch as she leaned into his touch.   
"Oh Bluebell, how I've missed you."   
His eyes fairly glowed with love when she met them, and her heart skipped a beat. For in all of her dreams since he had vanished whenever she had gotten to his eyes they were always grey never the silver she knew them to be.   
Her finger tips brushed through his whiskers and ghosted up his cheek until she reached his tattered ear. If he reacted how she thought he would then she'd know she was dreaming.   
The gasp that it pulled from him was not what usually happened.   
"You're here? Like really here? How is that possible?!"   
His laugh was music but the kiss that followed was headier than elven wine as she rose on her tiptoes to devour him.   
  
Dwalin drew away with a shaky laugh, peppering kisses all over her cheeks and neck before he drew away. Her whine of disappointment almost broke his determination but he knew there wasn't much time.   
"Bluebell,  _ **Ghivashel**_ please listen to me. I don't know how much time I have and I need to tell you something."   
The tiny frown that marred her brows was adorable and it was all he could do to not kiss it away.   
"I am in the Gardens of Lorien."   
Tears began to grow in the corner of her beautiful eyes "You're dead."   
Panic iced him and made everything clearer "NO! I'm not dead. Yavanna and Mahal saved me! They pulled me there but then we ran into a hiccup of sending me back."   
Confusion replaced the tears and she cocked her head.   
"Manwe and Varda along with some of the others are going to be sending me back on the Summer Solstice."   
Bluebell's bottom lip popped out in a pout "But that is over a month away!"   
"I know darling but it's the best they can do. I promise you I will return to you."   
  
Bluebell drank in all the details he told her and she tried to commit every inch of him to memory when his outline began to waver.   
"No! I'm not ready to lose you again." she cried as he made a pained face.   
"I know but I will see you on the Solstice." he groaned as he wavered more.   
She nodded squeezing his hand "The Solstice. Dwalin I love you."   
Silver eyes blazed at her "Truly?"   
She nodded as he began to fade "Truly. Wait Dwalin! Where will you be arriving?"   
" _I... Love... You... Too."_  
And with that he was gone.   
  
  
 

 

  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> varudhghalut mahzâyungâl ~ Pig Fucker.  
> Rum gabura~ May it Melt! (Fuck/Dammit/Bugger it) I'm using it in place of Fuck here.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bluebell is rushing to figure out where in Yavanna's Green Gardens Dwalin is supposed to be returning to.  
> There are unwanted suitors arriving everyday and some do not want to take "No Thank you" as an answer.   
> Dwalin is positive that heads are going to roll the minute he gets back into the Mountain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for being patient while waiting for this update!   
> I have been sick and writer's block is a bitch.

"Do you think they could be returning him to where they took him from?" Bofur asked.  
"Maybe? but isn't the Door Step mostly gone?" Bluebell looked uncertain and frustrated as she shifted the nursing baby.   
"Well how many temples are there?" queried Ori.  
"In Erebor or everywhere."   
"Erebor!" Thorin stated loudly making everyone jump and the baby whimper earning him a glare from the Hobbit.   
Kili looked affronted at Thorin's shout "Well how was I supposed to know?"   
"Honestly Kee, why would the Valar return him anywhere but here?" Fili fixed the younger dwarf with a look reminiscent of Thorin's patented  _Don't be an idiot_ look.  
"Let's see," Ori spread a blue print of the inside of the Lonely Mountain open on the table "It looks like there are 11 temples scattered throughout the lower levels of Erebor. I know that debris has been cleared from Mahal's obviously, Manwe's and Ulmo's with work beginning on-."   
"Wait," Bluebell held up a hand cutting off her brother "Eleven? But there are 14 Valar once exclude Melkor."   
The expression on everyone's faces told her clearly they thought she was making that up.   
Ori cleared his throat "Um perhaps Hobbits worship a different pantheon?"   
"Starting when? Just now? I'm pretty sure I would have mentioned that in all our talks if we followed different Valar. Especially considering the Vala that created Hobbits is married to your creator."   
  
  
Yavanna couldn't help the giggle that bubbled up as she watched all the Dwarrow exclaim over learning that she was married to Mahal and they had apparently forgotten that along with some of the other Valar. The silvery liquid swirled as Bluebell was calling them all idiots for not knowing that very basic info about their own creators.   
"Is that Bluebell?"   
She looked down to see Dwalin drawing up alongside her; though tall for his kind he only reached her elbow. So he could not see into the cauldron that's lip was up to her bosom.   
Silver eyes met golden brown as she nodded the affirmative.   
Dwalin smirked as he heard her exclaimed that someone was being a thick clot head and then he froze as a baby's mewling cry welled from the vessel.  
"Is- is that *cough* that my-"   
She could hear the emotion tight in the warrior's throat so she finished the sentence for him "That is your daughter."   
"Is she- is she healthy?" his voice sounded wet as he studied the steel capped toes of his boots.   
"Oh she is very healthy and well cared for between Bluebell and your family. You'll see soon, _ **azaghâlithûh."**_  
"'m not that young." he rumbled.   
"Compared to me you are."  
He nodded his bald head and she studied the runes tattooed into his scalp. They were a pledge to help Thorin reclaim their lost home and she knew that he had cut off his Mohawk in penance.    
"Tell me, son of Fundin, what will you do now that Erebor has been reclaimed."   
He made a show of fussing with his knuckle dusters before clearing his throat "I suppose I'll return to guarding Thorin and the lads, help develop protection for Erebor and perhaps an army eventually once more Dwarrow return."   
"What about Bluebell and your daughter? Will you have them return to the Shire?" Yavanna kept her voice level as she carefully worded the questions.   
The dwarf made a strangled noise in his throat and seemed to be struggling with the words that crawled from his mouth "I would let her do as she wishes."   
She didn't stop the frown that darkened her brow or the vines that sprung up to wrap around his ankles rooting him.   
"Seriously?"   
Nessa popped up on the other side of them and froze mid spin "Sweet Eru, Seriously?"   
Dwalin looked thoroughly confused as he looked up at the darkening scowl of the Vala.   
"Seriously? You'd let her leave just like that?" she ground out.  
The dwarf flushed as he stammered "I-I wouldn't want her to leave but if she wanted to go back I would not stop her."   
"Do you even know what would happen if she tried to return to the Shire?" chirped Nessa as she resumed dancing around them.   
His answer was a head shake.   
"Save me from the thickness of Dwarves." Yavanna growled "Bluebell was already close to being a pariah when you lot invaded her Smial. The only thing that saved her was being a Widow and the Head of the Baggins clan. Now? Well if she turned up now, unmarried and with a child out of wedlock, she would be exiled from Hobbiton for certain perhaps all of the Shire depending on how her Grandfather felt about everything. You would let her go back to that? After everything she's done not only for you but your kind! You'd let her become a nonperson amongst her kind with your child in tow?"   
  
Dwalin had begun to pale as she laid it all out, spelled out exactly what would happen to his One and child if he didn't grow some stones. He felt light headed and shaky as he thought of them being so far from him, being cast out by her people and it would be his fault for not asking her to stay.   
He shook his head clearing the depressing thoughts that had started to grow there like storm clouds "No, NO! I will not let them go back to that. If she'll have me I will marry her. I will protect them and provide for them. I'll be hers as she is mine. My family will come before my duty to the Royal Family."   
Yavanna beamed down at him and he felt as though he had just passed a very important test he didn't even know he was taking.   
"Well done, Master Dwalin. Duty is fine and good but do not let it replace love in your heart when you have a Hobbit who loves you so very much. Bluebell will be waiting for you to ask her to stay after you return. Do not keep her waiting or she will think you've changed your mind." Vaire intoned from where she sat with a small loom.   
He bowed to her as he gave his thanks for the advice.   
  


Time felt as though it was passing a snail’s pace to Bluebell as she waded through text after text trying to decide where it was most likely for Dwalin to return to. By all rights it would be most appropriate for him to return from the spot he disappeared but that spot was gone.

Half the Company was positive that he'd be returned to Mahal's temple while the others thought he would return to Eru's temple with only Bluebell and Ori thinking it might be Yavanna's tiny shrine where he'd return.

Every meeting seemed to devolve into arguing and her head throbbed like a war drum as she made her way back to her quarters.

_Confounded Dwarves can't ever agree on anything!_

_Stone headed lot wouldn't even listen to me or Ori!_

_Thought Dain and Thorin were about to whip out their hammers and measure._  
  
The thought of the two leaders acting like teens made giggles bubble up in her throat as the sound of her feet meeting stone barely echoed down the hall. Dain and Thorin had insulted each others intelligence, forge skills, battle tactics and bollocks size before she had been able to call an end to the meeting. She had only managed that by bringing out her skillet and slamming it on the table between the red faced roaring pair; Kili and Fili had beat a hasty retreat as far from Thorin as was dignified without it being obvious they were abandoning their Uncle to the Hobbit's ire. Bofur had stepped in front of Dori while Ori scooted as far as he could with his papers and ink well, quill flying across the parchment, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth as he documented everything including the insults. Balin had sighed before putting a hand to his tired brow, Gloin had tried to discreetly hand money off to Nori for wager she didn't even want to know about and Dis just took it all in with a disgusted shake of her head.

  
_Why wouldn't he be returned by Yavanna? She's clearly had a hand in our lives and relationship so far_ she rubbed the tip of her ear where the posy was hidden in her curls.   
  
_Sweet Yavanna I hope Rosie is hungry! I feel like I'm about to bust my laces._

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she did not notice the Dwarf waiting outside her door until she almost ran into him.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry, please excuse my inattention Master Dwarf." she exclaimed stopping just short of bouncing off his barrel chest; he was taller than her to the point of making her tip her head back to see his bearded face. When she caught his eye she gave a shy smile and was surprised when he flushed a deep red. 

"Excuse me; Mistress B-Baggins is it?" he rumbled looking everywhere but at her. 

She had never seen a dwarf look so nervous other than Dwalin; it was a bit unnerving to see this fellow fidget under her gaze.  
"Yeees." she drawled with an eyebrow arched quizzically.   
"My name is Arvid, son of Morvid, Master Mason. I- I - I..." he seemed to be studying a spot over her shoulder and as she tried to meet his eye the stammering increased before he said "Here!"    
  
Her muscles tensed as he moved to draw a hand from his side and she chided herself for being so wary of others as he handed her a small stone box wrapped with some satin ribbon. It was heavier than she expected and before she could say anything he was beating a hasty retreat down the hall.   
  
"Alrighty then, What in Yavanna's green earth was that?" she muttered as she opened her door to slip into her room.   
Bombur and Bifur looked up from their spots on her couch; Rosie was snuggled into the crook of the Chef's arm sound asleep. The rest of the Company had been surprised when the cousins had volunteered for babysitting duty but it warmed Bluebell's heart. Bifur had declared himself Bluebell and her daughter's guard until Dwalin returned and Bombur had insisted there was no need for him to be in the meeting, he'd prefer to be with his cousin and the Dwobbit. He was a Valar-sent help too since he was an old hand with wee ones having so many himself.   
  
"So how did it go?" a small smile twitched his red mustache.   
Bluebell couldn't help the groan that escaped her as she made her way across the room to her sleeping babe.   
"Oh you know how Thorin is and Dain is just like him so naturally it erupted quickly and nothing was decided. Has she been asleep long? I was hoping she'd be awake and hungry."   
Bifur's hands flashed through signs quicker than she could keep up before Bombur translated "About an hour he thinks. Oh I'm sure she'll be hungry too so do not despair just yet."   
**"What is she holding?"** ground out Bifur in his roughhewn voice.   
Even though she couldn't actually understand him she knew he was asking about the box in her hand and she handed it to the toy maker before perching on the arm chair next to them.   
  
Bifur turned the little stone box this way and that grunting out what might have been words to his cousin before catching her eye with a question in his dark ones.   
"Go ahead."   
  
His large hands were gentle as he pulled the satin ribbon away but the scowl on his face only darkened as he studied what was inside the little vessel.   
She craned her neck trying to see what could be offending the kind dwarf so much but the angle and her lack of height worked against her.   
"What is it? Bifur, what is the matter?" she shared a concerned look with Bombur who was trying to shift his seat without waking the baby.   
"Cousin, what is the matter?"   
The Khuzdul that spilled from his lips sounded like granite slabs rubbing together and the red haired dwarf's face soon matched his hair in shade.   
_What could possibly in such a tiny container that could make them so angry?  
  
__It's not even big enough to hold a letter!  
  
__Honestly I'm sure they're just being over protective... again.  
  
_ Her thoughts were scattered as Rosie began to squirm in Bombur's arms and she readily took the little lass pulling at the ties on the front of her dress as she sat back in the arm chair. The growling conversation drifted around her as she got the baby settled and relief flooded her as her breast was drained.   
Happy grunting made her smile as she studied the side of her daughter's face, the curls of dark hair were getting thicker but they still did not obscure the tiny leaf shaped ears Rosie had inherited from her. Her heart panged at the thought of Dwalin cooing over her little ears as his older brother was wont to do whenever he thought no one was looking. She shut her eyes and leaned her head back trying to ignore the tears that threatened.   
_Please let him return to me.  
_  
"Bluebell, Bluebell!"   
She snapped her eyes open to see Bombur and Bifur staring at her with concern overshadowing their previous ire.   
"I'm sorry I was caught up in some emotions." she sniffed and waved her hand "I'm alright. What is in the box?"   
The injured dwarf gave her a soft look before motioning to his cousin to show her what was nestled within.   
"A hair clasp? That's what has you both upset?" she turned confused eyes to the pair and could almost hear the mental groan they shared.   
  
  
Dori wanted to lock his sister away.   
Lock her away at least until Dwalin returned and even then he might keep her and his niece hidden!   
_Honestly how can this be happening so soon!  
  
__She clearly has a nursing babe; who would want to court her so soon!  
  
_ He paced in front of the fire place grumbling under his breath while his brothers, sister, and soon to be  _possible_  brother in law watched.   
"Dori, I really don't see what the issue is." Bluebell protested again from her seat.   
There was a collective groan before Ori piped in "She's not going to understand until we explain it, **Nadad.** "   
A soft sound drew his attention back to Balin who was nodding in agreement "Aside from beads she hasn't learned many of our customs yet. And thanks to my younger brother's idiocy she doesn't even have his beads currently."   
He blanched at that reminder.   
_Mahal's Balls he right!  
  
__She doesn't even have the protection of Dwalin's beads since the big oaf messed that up so spectacularly.  
  
__No wonder she's had suitor already!  
  
__She's the freaking Savior of Erebor!  
  
Mountain Mother and Dragon Slayer.  
  
Plus she's proven her fertility quite obviously.   
  
__Doesn't hurt she's beautiful in an exotic manner and Rosie is adorable to boot.  
  
__Sweet Yavanna you have to send that rock head back soon before this gets to be too much.  
  
  
_ {"Oh dear I didn't expect that." the Vala muttered as she watched Bluebell learn that Arvid was wanting to begin the rites of courting with her.   
"What? What didn't you expect?" Dwalin and Mahal materialized by her elbows and she couldn't hid a small cringe at being caught talking to herself. Again.   
"Oh well just um time moving forward and that sort of thing?" she muttered while finding a little cloud passing by very interesting.   
Silence stretched between the trio as Yavanna tried to look everywhere but at the males; this proved particularly difficult since her husband was taller than she and Dwalin was much shorter therefore dominating her field of vision.   
"What didn't you expect, darling?"   
She met Mahal's warm eyes and knew she couldn't remain silent for long as their gazes locked. She could never resist that look from him and she was terrible at keeping secrets in general.   
" **HE WANTS TO WHAT?"**    
The shriek shattered the quiet that had filled the spaces between them and Dwalin moved to draw his hammer before he realized the voice had erupted from the cauldron.   
"Oh dear." she ducked her head and let a veil of her hair fall over her face.   
"Was- was that Bluebell?" Dwalin stretched on his tip toes to peek over the lip of the cauldron while Mahal was trying to catch her eye.   
" _Palurien."_ her husband drew her name out like he was pulling sticky sugar on a hot day and she felt her will stretching with it.   
_Ok.  
  
__Alright I'll just tell them what is happening. It's only one suitor and Bluebell is not interested at all.  
  
__I'm sure Dwalin will be fine with the news...  
  
__or he'll start smashing my daisies again.  
  
_ Pushing the hair back from her face she turned to the pair and gave them such a sunny smile the all the  flowers in the clearing turned towards them. Almost in unison the dwarf and his creator crossed their arms over their chest, and raised an eyebrow at her.   
"So something I didn't think of happened," she trailed a hand around the lip of the cauldron as she circled it, effectively putting it between her and them. Dwalin opened his mouth but she silenced him with a hand "Now that new Dwarrow are arriving at the Mountain, Bluebell is being 'noticed'."   
Dwalin snorted "Ah course she's being noticed! She's the one that killed Smaug and helped us survive the Battle of Five Armies." he gave her a pointed look that seemed to call her intelligence into question.   
Her green eyes locked with his silver ones "That is not the type of  _noticed_ I meant."   
The warrior's response was to roll his eyes "Oh aye she's quite visible being the only Hobbit most of them will have ever seen and she's one of Thorin's scribes as well."   
A look shot at Mahal had the Vala widening his eyes in recognition "Oh! She means that others have begun to flirt with Bluebell."   
  
  
Dwalin felt himself freeze at Mahal's interpretation and when he looked up at Yavanna she gave a small nod. He ran a hand over his bald head and the feeling of fuzz growing distracted him as different scenes ran through his mind.   
_Others flirting with Bluebell?  
  
__I shouldn't be surprised honestly._  
  
  
"Are- are there a lot of them?" his voice sounded odd to his own ears.   
She shook her head "Not so far. Only one has shown interest in her and I think her brothers are going to be handling him." she smiled.   
"One, one is alright. Bluebell is beautiful and has all the honors to make her even more enticing. I'll be back before more come out of the stone work right?"   
Both of the Valar nodded a bit too vigorously for his taste but he took it as reassuring and left it alone.}  
  
  
  
  
Bluebell had been certain that Arvid was a fluke and she wouldn't have to deal with any other would be suitors while she tried to help narrow down the locations of the shrines and temples.   
She had been wrong.   
  
Dori and Bofur had dealt with Arvid, letting the Stone Mason know that his chance at courting their sister were as likely as Thorin marrying an Elf and they had also thought that was the end of it.   
  
Dwarrow seemed to be hiding in the cracks, springing forth with tiny gifts and honeyed words like tulips in the spring time. They always seemed to know the minute she let her guard down and then one would pounce. There had been a few that sought her out in the Council Chambers until Thorin had lost his temper with the members ( some of whom had brought eligible sons to approach her) and broke the table down the middle with an ax. She had hugged the sputtering Monarch after he had bodily tossed a clot headed dwarf from where he had been hiding under her desk and he became red in the cheeks any time Kili reminded him.   
Soon Bifur and Bofur were appointed her escorts and Thorin began interviewing guards as she seemed to encounter eager males on even the shortest excursions through the Kingdom under the Mountain.  
Eager suitors had tried to catch her in the Library until Ori had demonstrated that he had in fact inherited his oldest brother's strength by tossing a table at Destin, Son of who knows when he had tried to steal a kiss from her. The Silversmith had sought her out a few times before that always striking up a conversation about books with her and he had seemed genuinely curious about her work helping restore order to the old manuscripts.   
She had no inkling that Destin had designs on her and had thought she was making a friend right up till he had caught her up in his arms while making a face that reminded her of a freshly caught trout. Her scream had brought Ori vaulting over piles of books and before the echo had even died her youngest brother had wrested her from the other dwarf's arms before throwing a oak table at him while shouting what sounded like awful insults in Khuzdul.   
Everyone gave the scholar a wide berth while shooting him looks of awe now and Ori puffed up strutting down the halls; Bluebell couldn't help but laugh at her brother and compare him to a little rooster.  
  
Every morning when she peeked out of her door there were normally half a dozen or more little trinket boxes sitting on the floor and hanging off the knocker.   
 

Dis found it all very amusing, her sons and brother threatening to castrate any male that looked at Bluebell twice and all the creative ways that what seemed like half the new population of Erebor were demonstrating their interest in the little Hobbit lass.   
"It's really not funny." Bluebell muttered as she dropped a basket full of mathoms into the Princess's lap. She didn't know what else to do with all the little things; she refused to wear any of the jewelry even though some of it was lovely, the little stone boxes, vases, pots and figures were beginning to take up all the open shelf space in her quarters.   
She had been informed that returning the little items would be considered rude since they were all obviously made by hand and since there was no letter of intent attached it would be considered insulting the craftsmanship. So she divided all the bits and bobs amongst the Company.   
"Oh but it is!" Dis cackled "It seems my brother was going to set you up a your own small troop of armed guards only to find out half of them fancied you as well!"   
  
  
{The daisies and violets of Lorien didn't know what hit them as Dwalin tried to keep his cool about all the Dwarrow attempting to court his One. Mahal and Tulkas had tried to distract him with intense wrestling and training sessions but Yavanna and the others gossiping ruined it. While he reveled in learning new techniques and tactics he couldn't stop fantasizing about using them on the **hubma rakits** that were trying to worm their way into Bluebell's heart.   
  
"So  _how_ many suitors has Bluebell had now?" queried Nessa as she spun across the grass.   
Yavanna couldn't help the scowl that clouded her face and the pointed glare she shot her little sister at the rude question. Nessa leaped across the hedge before giving Yavanna a confused look "What? I was just curious."  
"She is young and artless. She does not understand woes of the heart like the denizens of Middle Earth." intoned Varda from her seat beside Manwe.   
"Aye she reminds me of Kili and Fili. Clay behind their ears." rumbled Dwalin as he stomped up "I wish I could see into this bloody pot."   
She couldn't help the giggle that bubbled up at the fierce glare he was giving the offending metal as though he could melt a hole through it.   
"I think I can help with that!" she laughed and with a wiggle of her fingers a tree stump came waddling from behind the shrubs.   
  
Dwalin felt a little odd stepping up on the previously walking lump of wood but he appreciated being able to see into the overly large cooking pot finally. The liquid within swirled without being stirred and for the longest time he couldn't make out an image in its depths until suddenly Bluebell's face blossomed to the surface. His heart clenched as he took in her thin features looking anxiously at something he could not see and the desire to caress the worry from her brow had him reaching out before he remembered he could not touch her.  
"This has to stop Nadad!" her sweet voice echoed in his ears and he was so absorbed in her that he didn't hear Dori's response. Her image wavered and he leaned forward to drink in the sight of her; her honey curls, button nose with the freckles like stars across the bridge, sparkling green eyes that shone with kindness, her lovely leaf shaped ears, and her cheeks where pink roses bloomed when a smile curled those pink lips.   
"34 suitors this week! This is madness! How can they have all forgotten I am Dwalin's One."   
He froze.   
_34 suitors this week?  
  
__Mahal's Balls how many in total!  
  
__How could they not know she's my One? She wears my Be-  
  
__My Bead!  
_ His hand slapped the pouch hanging from his belt where the Aventurine bead was housed along with the silver marriage beads and clasps marking her as a Mother.   
  
_Durin wept she doesn't have them  
  
_ "I wish Dwalin was here." her soft voice rings through the air and his anger returns full force; it burns through his veins and sets his gaze on fire.   
  
He doesn't know how he ended up away from the cauldron and in another part of the Garden but the small clusters of flowers and the piles of deadwood are perfect targets for his rage. The roars of his pain echoing through the woods for far longer than the Valar had expected and when Mahal finally approached the area the flowers were nothing but petals moved by the breeze, the deadwood broken up smaller than kindling and Dwalin was knelt leaning against his hammer, asleep.  
"Do not worry my child, soon you'll be returned to your **Khebabmudtu**."}  
  
  
After that little bit of knowledge from Dis, Bluebell began to relax around her new trio of guards and not look at them so warily. They certainly seemed uninterested in her in the romantic sense and she was happy that Bofur and Bifur were getting a break.   
The youngest of the trio caught her eye more than once and she found herself blushing brightly whenever their eyes met.    
He was young seeming to her, similar to Kili in mannerisms but more serious. Dori had informed her it is rude to ask how old someone is and so far none of the others knew since this guard had just showed up with the latest caravan.   
They followed her everywhere in pairs while one stayed with Rosie at all times (at Bluebell's insistence) and it seemed as though it helped deter some of the suitors but not all.   
She had no idea that infatuation could turn into something so much more dangerous and it was so much closer than any of them anticipated.  
  
  
_"She suspects nothing! Soon she'll be mine and we will be the ones to enjoy her share of the treasure. I can make her love me."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> azaghâlithûh ~ My warrior that is young (I figure Yavanna can get away with calling Dwalin that.) Found translation on Wordpress.  
> Hubma rakits~ assholes
> 
> Palurien~ Older name for Yavanna meaning Lady of the Wide Earth.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bluebell's stalker makes his move and now it's a race against the clock to find her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot thank yall for all the kudos and sweet comments. I love them!  
> I'm sorry this has taken me so long to put up. I had writers block and then I just had too many ideas running around in my mind for me to be able to focus on this story.  
> Now the cherry on top is my oldest daughter is on summer break.  
> Send me wine please.

Bluebell looked around her and rubbed a hand over her eyes. The room still looked the same; it was her room in Bag End. 

_How am I back in the Shire?_

_How in the blue blazes did I get back here?_

Nothing had changed, it looked exactly like it had when she had dashed out the door to follow 13 dwarves. 

_Have I just been dreaming it all?_

"You're in my dream now, Amrâlimê."

_I know that voice._

Slowly she turned towards her four poster bed holding her breath and hoping that he wouldn't vanish in a whisp of smoke before her eyes.

Dwalin was there and looked more real than he ever had before in her dreams. He looked like an erotic picture, like the ones she'd seen in some of the books that Ori stashed in a curtained off corner of the Library. His large body barely fit on her little bed, his feet, his _bare_ feet reaching the very end of the mattress as he reclined against the pillows heaped at the head and he was topless. Soft candle light lit the room and winked off the silver hoops that adorned his nipples, the silver cuffs on both ears and a lit his eyes were mercurial as he studied her; she suddenly felt very exposed before him. The weight of his gaze sent a thrill through her that made her nipples hard and the rasp of thin fabric over them jerked her attention south to discover that instead of the heavy flannel nightgown Dori had made her for sleeping in Erebor she was wearing a very thin cotton summer night gown. A low growl from Dwalin pulled her blushing attention back to him and she could tell he was enjoying the view very much.

"You are in my dream this time, Bluebell. Come to me." his voice pulled her slowly across the rug to him and try as she might she could find no reason not to go.

"How- how is this possible, _Cariad_?" she whispered as he pulled by the hand on to the bed with him. The look in his quicksilver eyes made her feel as though she was something to feast upon instead of speaking with. A hot hand caressed down the length of her arm and raised goose flesh in its' wake.

"Irmo must be taking pity on me." he quipped as he ducked his dark head to steal a kiss from her that left them both breathless. Words escaped them both as she pulled him in for another kiss that bled into another and soon she found that she was almost too warm for even this light gown.  
  
"Do you know how much time we have?"

Dwalin shook his head as he peppered kisses up her neck and onto her ear; fireworks exploded behind her eyes and she decided she didn't a fig about time as his tongue traced the arc to the pointed tip. Her hands traced every inch of him that she could touch and soon she hungered for more tugging at the stubborn laces of his leather breeches.

"Impatient much, **Thutrel**? Nothing is pulling me away from you." he murmured against the column of her throat as his strong fingers made short work of the buttons on the front of her sleepwear.

"Yes. Off!" she almost moaned feeling very wanton as his tongue traced her collarbones, the sensation sending a bolt of liquid heat straight to her core.

"Patience, **bunmel**."

Any and all comebacks died as he fastened a mouth around a pert nipple while his other hand worked on pushing the gown to her feet where she kicked it to floor. He pulled her under him and all she could do was savor the weight, and feel of his hands on her touch starved skin. His work roughened hands felt the same now as they did in Beorn's garden so long ago and the noises he was coaxing from her were music to his ears.

"Please, Dwalin, oh please!" she cried out as his hand ghosted up her thigh to lightly stroke at her damp folds; she pressed upwards trying to increase the pressure only for him to draw back more! She wiggled and rolled against him trying to convey her frustrations.  
As much as the lightness of the touches drove her mad Bluebell found herself gasping in disappointment when he withdrew his wander digits completely.  
Running a hand downwards she hoped to find where his hands had gone she savored touching every muscled inch of him as she went. Tiny kisses were trailed down the lightly haired expanse of his chest and she almost purred when he made a growl as she nibbled at his nipple, tugging the silver ring with her teeth gently.

His hands returned and soon it felt like a race to see who could touch the other more and she let out a delighted sound when her hands reached his waist band.

_They were loose!_

"Oh sweet _Yavanna_ I have missed your touch!" she panted while giving an experimental push and soon slipped her hands into his pants to grip his buttocks. She bucked as she pulled him against her the pressure singing through her.

"Durin's beard Bluebell, you are going to drive me mad." he groaned as she pressed harder against him rubbing on the hard ridge in the front of his pants with a small mewl.

"Then stop dawdling and take your bloody pants off." she hissed as she nibbled his ear lobe. 

"Such a demanding little thing you are Th- oh sweet _AULE_!"

Bluebell couldn't help the giggle that slipped out as she bit him on the neck again while her nails traced the edge of his torn ear. A frenzy seemed to slip over them and soon he shucked his pants down his hips to join her gown on the floor.  
"I have missed you,  _llygaid golau lleuad."_ she panted as one of his thick fingers slipped inside her stroking her desire to inferno heights. 

Dwalin's cock sprang forward and for a moment Bluebell could only stare at it as he held himself over her, waiting.  
Cords stood out in his neck as she ran a tentative hand down his hot length " **Azrali zi du namrul**." 

 _That fit inside of me!_  

"Oh my." she gasped as he slipped between her thighs to nudge at her soaked sex.

Dark brows drew down over grey eyes "Are you alright? I can stop."

In that moment she thought her heart might burst at his words.

 _You had a baby by him obviously it fits well. You didn't hurt the first time_.

She held back none of the emotions as she looked up at him and nodded "I'm alright. Don't stop. I just forgot how big you are." she added a wink to ease the worry still in his eyes.   
 

She held her breath a little as he slipped his head in then slowly pressed the length in until his pelvis was flush with hers. The feeling was divine, no pain of any kind, he fit in her like a puzzle piece albeit a puzzle piece that pulsed and made her moan low in her throat.

"St-still al-alright?" he ground out and she looked up from the mesmerizing sight of his flesh going into hers to seem his arms shaking, sweat dotting his brow but concern shining in those gorgeous eyes.

"Oh _Mahal's_ ball yes!" she tightened her sheath muscles to prove her point and his eyes actually fluttered shut for a moment. The knowledge that she had caused him such intense pleasure was a heady mixture that almost made her cum right then.   
" _Yavanna's_ tits you're going to kill me." he moaned before fastening his lips to hers as he drug his cock out of her just to slip it in again. The rhythm was set in no time and she rode it with him gleefully as she clawed his back while howling her pleasure. The ecstasy on his face as she tugged at his hair before running her nails down his spine sent such an intense spike of arousal through her at the sight that her legs began to shake. Her hooked ankles pulled him deeper and she knew that she was going to come undone soon as he drove into her while growling a jumble of words in Khuzdul that she did not recongnize.

"Oh sweet _Eru_ , Dwalin I'm- I'm-I'm..." the words she wanted left her mind as he sat up and hooked his hands under her knees lifting her backside up from the bed. Muscles bulged, sweat ran down their skins and she wasn't sure her toes could curl anymore as he pounded into her from this new angle.

"Bluebell I'm gonna- blessed _Mahal_ I'm going cum." fever bright eyes caught hers and she felt things coiling impossible tight in her belly.

"Cum with me Dwalin." she moaned watching him through half lidded eyes snaking her hands up to grasp at her breasts.  
He shook his dark head and ran a hand down her front to stroke her pearl "No. I want you to cum for ME!" he roared matching stroke for stroke.

His words and the pace he set whipped her into a whirlwind; she felt that coil shatter shooting her to the stars screaming and shaking. Dwalin's roar and the feeling of his hot seed spilling inside her pushed her to new heights.

"I love you."  
Bluebell forced her eyes open and turned her head to meet Dwalin's soft eyes. There was hope there in the dove grey depths and a mix of other emotions she couldn't pin point in her sex fogged mind.   
"I love you too,  **kurdel."** her tongue felt clumsy as she tried out one of the words Ori had taught her. It was clear she hadn't mucked it up to bad when Dwalin's eyes began to sparkle.   
She said nothing as he pulled her tight against his chest and she could hear the stutter of his breath.   
His eyes were clearer than she'd ever seen when he pulled back to kiss her deeply.   
He knocked his tattooed forehead gently against hers flattening some sex mussed curls in the process "I will return to you."   
"I know, Dwalin."  
He took a deep breath "When I return I want- will you be my wife?" 

 

{When Dwalin opened his eyes again he found himself greeted by the sun instead of the bare beams of Bag End or the grey stone of Erebor like he'd hoped. He threw an arm over his eyes with a groan and rolled to his stomach only to discover his pants were stiff and crunchy feeling.  
_Lovely, just lovely._ He grimaced as he stood.   
_Wait. This is lovely! This is a great day!  
  
She said yes._

For the first time in far too long a song came to mind as he located on of the many ponds that the Gardens of Lorien hosted. He began to whistle as he shucked his clothing and waded into the cool water bring the soiled garment with him.  
Bofur had sung the song on more than one occasion as they had crossed Arda on the way to Erebor often winking at Bluebell as he sang which made the little hobbit blush bright pink. The last time Bofur had sung it Bluebell had hummed along stating that it was a very sweet song and perhaps her favorite of the ones he sang.   
His rich baritone filled the glen as he sung while scrubbing "I've lived a long life and now I'm looking back. It's the end of the road, the last stop on the track and I smile as think of my true love once more. The light of my life, the one I adore!"  
So caught up in his ablutions he did not notice Yavanna and Nessa creeping up to hide behind the cattails that lined the bank.   
"She... she was the prize.  
The prettiest girl with the loveliest eyes  
She... she was the prize; Shiny golden hair and those lovely... lovely green eyes."  
Nessa almost revealed them when she squealed having spotted Dwalin's pants drying on the large boulder beside them.   
"Shush!" Yavanna hissed and Nessa clapped a hand of her mouth before the giggles could be heard.   
Vana and Vaire slipped up beside their sisters "What are we doing?" whispered Vaire before Dwalin launched into another verse; his deep tone silenced them all as they watched and listened.  
  
"I met her one night at the Harvest Fair dance.  
I longed for a whisper, I hoped for a glance then she turned and she smiled and I melted away!  
And I knew I'd be with her 'til my dying day!"   
  
Vana flapped a hand to shoo away the birds that were trying to cover the bushes around them and the little pests responded by squawking loudly before taking wing. 

"I've shed all my tears and I've said my good-byes.  
Now I'll lay myself down where my pretty girl lies and when I awake I'll be home once more!  
I'll be dancing a jig with the girl I adore."   
  
"Hey why are you lot hiding in the bu- sweet shit he's naked!" Tulkas' voice boomed through the clearing causing the spying Valar to squeal and Dwalin to drop into the water up to his ears.   
"Sweetie, I swear it's not what you think!" Nessa squeaked as she rushed to her spouse's side. Tulkas seemed almost shell shocked for moment before doubling over laughing. Yavanna and Vaire soon joined the laughter as they spotted Dwalin standing at the water's edge with seaweed hanging from his beard and storm clouds in his eyes.   
"He's not wearing anything at all!" Vana exclaimed clapping a hand over her eyes while her siblings roared with laughter.   
Dwalin crossed his arms over his chest and smirked "Aye, I generally bath nude. Doesn't everyone?"   
"Hmmmm he does cut an impressive figure." Nessa peeked around her husband's side "Oh he's really tattooed everywhere!"   
Yavanna stepped closer to him and knelt down "Speaking of tattoos that one," she tapped his soul mark "is looking remarkably better than the last time I saw it. What has happened, son of Fundin?"   
"Sister do you really need to be poking at the naked dwarf?"   
"What's the matter Tulkas? Am I making you uncomfortable?" Dwalin widened his stance and a smile split his black beard.   
The huge Vala caught Nessa as she tried to slip under his arm "No- but the females shouldn't be staring," he answered lamely.  
"I just want a closer looook. I won't touch I promise." his wife whined from where Tulkas flipped her over his shoulder.    
He swatted her bottom "No more touching the dwarf."   
"Ahem I asked you a question,  **azaghâlithûh."**  
Dwalin ended the staring match he was having with Vaire and looked at Yavanna kneeling in the damp sand before him. He knew he should feel exposed or rude for standing there nude before the Valar that helped shape Middle Earth but it wasn't his fault they decided to spy on him while he was bathing!   
He rolled his eyes "I'm not that young."  
The Giver of Fruits laughed softly "Compared to me, _Rhyfelwr tywyll,_ everyone but my siblings is young. Now stop avoiding my question."   
He relaxed his stance "My apologies **Kaminzabduna,** " he bowed his head to her "Last night I was gifted time with my **Khebabmudtu** and I asked her to become my wife once I've returned. She happily accepted."   
"I knew he'd do that." stated Vaire with a smug look on her face while she tried to maintain eye contact with Dwalin.   
"YES! Pay up Manwe I won the bet!" boomed Tulkas so loudly that it shook the ground they stood on and in the wind they all heard the responding "Damn it!" }

 

  
  
Bluebell awoke feeling more relaxed than she had in ages. Stretching revealed aches that she couldn't even be upset about and the smile that curled her lips was one she could not banish. Even Rosie was happy in her bassinet, cooing and waving her arms that she'd freed from her swaddling during the night.   
"Oh good morning my _melysio_." she crooned as she lifted her daughter up into her arms "I saw your Adad last night. Yes I did, yes I did." she bounced Rose making the little one smile gummily up at her.   
Amethyst Rose was changing so much it made Bluebell's heart hurt to think of all that Dwalin had missed. Her cheeks were those round delicious apple cheeks that you just want to smooch and her eyes were still more purple like her namesake than any other color. Bluebell knew they had till she turned a year before they would know what color they would be for sure. Rosie's curls were thicker and soft as duckling fuzz, Bluebell loved to bury her nose in it when she was stressed and just breathe in her sweet scent. Little wispy sideburns came down in front of her tiny leaf shaped ears; matching fluffy hair was on top of her adorable pudgy feet.  
"Soon, soon your Adad will get to see you." 

 

 _"They're all insane! They think Dwalin is coming back. We need to act soon because the minute she figures out he's gone for good she'll go back to the Shire."_  
  
  
"I still say he'll be returned in Mahal's temple." stated Kili rocking his chair back with his feet up on Thorin's desk.   
Thorin grunted in agreement as he signed another parchment that Balin put in front of him.   
"I think he'll be returned wherever Bluebell is. Why would they send him back to one of their temples?" asked Bofur from where he sat whittling by the fire.   
"Of course they'll return him to a temple! It's obvious they will want us to know who returned him and it'll be sign that they're real!" Oin shouted deafening Gloin beside him.   
Fili stroked his mustache and stared into the fire that was burning away the damp in Thorin's study "I'm with Kee and Uncle I think he'll pop up in Mahal's temple. Yavanna's little shrine is right next to it too so if we watch there tomorrow it's a twofer."   
"Yavanna! Why would he come back there? Mahal created us!" Oin scowled at the princes and they glared right back.   
Bluebell felt a headache beginning and her stomach growled. She had tried to add her thoughts but they had again ran right over her so she was waiting till they blew themselves out. Rosie stirred in her sleep where she laid in the reed basket by Bluebell's feet and she held her breath for crying to start but the baby just turned her head eyes still shut.   
Her stomach growled again, louder, more insistent and she caught Dori staring at her.  He began to make his way around the room from where he sat with Bofur and she knew that a lecture was coming since he heard her stomach growl.   
_When was the last time I ate?  
  
__Why are we arguing about this again?  
  
__Where is Gandalf? Just when a wizard would be useful too._    
  
The volume was escalating as Kili called Oin "deaf as a post" and Oin returned with "A clay behind the ears pain in the arse." Gloin and Fili were trading insult in Khuzdul while Thorin looked to be trying to ignore them and Bofur was laughing while giving them ideas on what to call each other.   
" **Nadad** I'm going to pop down to the kitchen and grab a tea tray right quick. Will you keep an eye on Rosie please?" she pointed to the basket where the little one slept. The oldest Ri smiled and nodded before picking up the basket to move it across the room to a quiet corner.   
"Do you want Bofur to go with you? Bifur stayed home with a headache this time. Probably a good thing with all this racket." Dori cringed as Thorin's voice boomed calling them all idiots.   
She shook her head "No I can handle it. The kitchen isn't that far from here. Let him relax, he's enjoying betting with Nori," she nodded to the pair exchanging little money bags.   
"Oh for the love of Mahal," Dori groaned going back to swat his partner and brother "Oi stop betting on everything you miscreants!"   
With a laugh she slipped from the room and stood for moment soaking in the quiet of the hallway. She nodded to the guards posted outside Thorin's doors before heading off towards the kitchen making a mental list of everything she wanted to bring back with her.   
If she had been paying attention she would have heard the heavy footsteps that joined her softer ones as she drew near the double doors of her destination. A soft cough from behind broke her contemplation and a heavy hand landed on her shoulder jerking her about to face the owner.   
"What? Destin what are you doing?" she tried to shake off the offending hand only for another to grab her by the upper arm. Her blood ran cold as she looked up into the face of her youngest guard. The 'Mother's Guard' as they'd been dubbed had the evening off since she knew she'd be with the Company till well into the night.   
Destin gave her a thin smile that made her want to shrink away from him but his iron grip on her shoulder began to border on painful and Korvin's hold of her arm reached bruising.   
_I have to make noise. If I shout Thorin's guards will come.  
  
_ "What is the meaning of this? Unhand me this instant!" she shouted stomping a foot.   
"We're taking you to our lord,  **Sharbragân."** growled Korvin his hot breath on her ear. The hard line of his body was pressed against her, she could feel his dagger pressing into her back and with a silent prayer to Mahal she kicked back to slam her heel into his unprotected shin.   
His hand dropped from her arm as he howled in pain grabbing his abused shin "Stupid Bitch!"   
"You're not taking me anywhere!" she yelled as she tried to land another blow.  
"Don't even think of it, Bluebell." Destin ordered tightening his hold till it felt like her collarbone was going to snap and she cringed downwards trying to escape the pain; the whisper of a blade being drawn made her slow and the feel of cold metal barely biting into the skin of her throat stopped her completely.   
Cold black eyes dominated Korvin's face as he limped up to them and backhanded her.   
She wanted to gasp, to cry out but she wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing that they caused her pain even as blood dripped from her nose. With a breath she straightened her spine and poured all of her hatred into them; her hatred for Destin and Korvin, hatred for males that think they can hit females, hatred for men that think they can get what they want through pain. It must have shone because Korvin swore under his breath and took half a step back.   
"Enough of this! He's waiting for us to bring her to him." snapped Destin re-sheathing his blade and hauling her to her feet. Korvin nodded his blonde head and snapped his fingers, more dwarrow stepped out from the doorways and she felt her heart beginning to sink when she realized some of them were Iron Hill's dwarves.   
"Let's go!" barked Destin and she tried to peek over her shoulder to see if there was anyone she could signal but the hall was empty.   
  
Bluebell lost track of all the side halls and hidden passages they took but she knew they were nearing the heart of the Mountain where not even Nori had explored completely. She had tried to trip Destin and Korvin more than once but all that had earned her was another backhand after the second attempt. The pain in her cheekbone was intense and she could feel it swelling already.   
_Well I can tell this going to bruise spectacularly.  
  
I wonder if Dis will have any cosmetics I can borrow if I survive this.   
  
If I survive this...  
_  
She missed a step and stumbled in the dark as a new fear settled in her stomach.   
"Oi keep up, halfling." snarled Destin jerking her almost off her feet.   
_What will happen to Rosie if I don't survive?  
  
What about Dwalin?  
_  
_He'll come back to the news that I've been murdered by lunatics._  
  
_No. I have survived a wicked husband, trolls, Goblins, Orcs on wargs, facing down Azog, giant spiders, a fucking DRAGON; I will not die here, not like this.  
  
  
_ Torches lit the hall they were in and as she glanced back she realized there really weren't as many dwarrow with them as she thought. Barely a hand full followed them albeit they were all armed they looked slow and heavy. Destin and Korvin were ignoring her now conversing in Khuzdul over her head and then it happened.  
She felt their grips relax. It wasn't much but she didn't need much and she doubted they'd relax much more before they noticed and clamped down again.   
With a practiced move that Nori had taught she slipped from their fingers and tumbled backwards coming up on her feet before sprinting back the way they came.   
Exhilaration zinged through her as the startled shouts echoed behind her and hope began to bloom as she neared the first turn in the hall.   
_If I can just get around the bend I can find somewhere to hide and then make my way back.  
_  
_I just need...  
  
  
_ Pain spiked through her thigh and she hit the wall with a cry sliding down to sit on the dirty floor; a black throwing dagger protruded from the meat of her leg and the sight of it made her sweat.   
"Ok... ok 1, 2, 3 FUCK!" she yelped as she pulled the blade free, she could feel the rush of blood soak the material of her skirt. Curses slipped from her lips as she pressed a hand full of material to the wound to try to staunch the blood flowing.   
"I told you not to try anything, Bluebell." Destin chided her as he strolled up twirling the mate to the dagger she hid in the folds of her skirt.   
"And I told you I'm not going."   
"I don't care what you want. Perhaps if you hadn't rejected me and sicced your brother on me this wouldn't be happening." he crossed his arms over his chest and smirked "Now you'll be going to our Lord and you have no say in the matter, witch."   
The smirk he wore filled her with an anger she hadn't felt in years, it burned white hot and sent new energy to burn through her tired limbs even the pain in her leg dimmed.   
"You cannot be serious." her lip curled in disdain "You and everyone else knows I'm waiting for Dwalin to return."   
"Please," he scoffed with an eye roll "Everyone knows that Dwalin is dead. You just won't admit it to yourself that he's never coming back. Why would one of the greatest warriors of our time want a Hobbit anyways?"  
Bluebell could see now that Destin was clearly being petty and she was not going to engage with him.   
They stared at each other until Korvin cleared his throat "He's waiting."   
"Right, yes of course" he jerked his head in the direction of Bluebell "grab her. Oh and get my knife back."   
  
  
{"Nonononononono." Yavanna slid her hands over her eyes and shook her head.   
"What is it, sister?"  Vaire walked up to look into the cauldron to see Bluebell being marched down a dark hall.   
"This cannot be happening!" Yavanna smacked the lip of pot in anger.   
"All the daisies I was dancing with just snapped shut. What is going on?" asked Nessa leaping over the stump that Dwalin had taken to standing on.   
Yavanna was just thankful he was off wrestling with Tulkas at the moment.   
She pushed blond hair out her eyes and met the worried eyes of her sisters "So it looks like Bluebell is being kidnapped."   
"WHAT!"   
Thundered rolled over head and the wind whipped around them shifting their robes. Manwe strode up to the group with anger in his eyes, robes billowing out behind him like the wings of the birds that lived in his skies and the stone in his staff flickered as though filled with lightening.   
  
They ringed the cauldron while Varda watched for Dwalin, Tulkas and Mahal to return.   
"How did this happen?" Manwe pinned Yavanna with his glowing eyes.   
"I have no idea! Aside from the suitors there was nothing else happening!" she exclaimed throwing her hands up.   
"Evil always hides in the shadows. Do not feel bad Sister none of us could have seen this coming either." Vaire comforted Yavanna with an arm around her shoulders.   
"Oh oh she's getting away!" Nessa pointed to Bluebell sprinting into the dark.   
They watched in silence as Bluebell dashed for the bend her thoughts whispering from the liquid of her plans to hide.   
"No!" they shout in unison as they watch Destin throw the dagger and it found it's mark in Bluebell's leg.  
"Is there any way we can help?" Vana implored Manwe looking up at him with eyes full of sadness.   
Manwe tapped his strong chin and smiled "I can send Olorin."   
"Do it."   
He stepped away whispering into the wind and soon the King of the Valar was gone in a flash of lightening.   
  
"Will Olorin make it in time?" whispered Nessa as they watched the Hobbit be pulled up from the floor by her arms.  
Orome patted the horn that hung from his belt "He'll make it." }  
  
Bluebell had hoped that Korvin would forget that she had one of Destin's blades but as the former guard brought her to standing he held out his hand "Give me the knife, witch."   
"Gladly." she smiled up at him as she sank the knife through his hand.   
She saw the butt of the ax coming but just couldn't seem to duck fast enough and the lights went out. 

  
  
Rosie had been crying inconsolable for over an hour when Nori realized that Bluebell still hadn't returned.   
"She only went to the kitchen right?" he asked Dori as they looked up and down the vacant hallway. Dori's normally tidy silver braids were distinctly frazzled as he followed Nori towards the kitchens.   
"Yes, she said she was going to get a tea tray full of snacks."   
They cringed as Rosie's sad sounds drifted up the hallway.   
"Looks like Bofur's singing didn't help like he thought it would." Dori looked over his shoulder as if expecting the toy maker to be running after them with the squalling infant.   
Nori chuckled dryly "That'll stick in his craw for a while. He thinks he's the 'baby whisperer' since all of Bombur's little ones calm for him instantly."   
Dori nodded in agreement "It is odd for Rosie to get like this. She's normally so happy unless she's wet or hungry and I changed her and you gave her that little bit of expressed milk we had."  
Nori knelt suddenly in the middle of the hallway "Maybe she knows something we don't," he held up red stained fingers "There's blood here." 

{Yavanna didn't have to go far to find her husband and Dwalin discussing forging techniques under a willow tree with Tulkas sleeping nearby on a patch of star moss.   
Mahal smiled at her as Dwalin called a greeting and she cringed knowing the news she carried was about to ruin the good mood.   
  
  
Dwalin pulled his tunic over his head so forcefully he could hear the stitching groan but he did not care if he ripped it in his haste, the rest of his clothing flew on and he smiled as the straps to his knuckle dusters bit into his hands as he tightened them.   
"Dwalin I'm sorry! I had no idea that there was any plotting going on." Yavanna apologized with tears in her beautiful eyes.   
"I know. Send me back NOW!"   
"We can't! Not till Manwe returns." Nessa peeped from behind a bush.   
The Valar had scattered when he came roaring for blood into the glade brandishing his axes. A small apple tree and a couple snowball bushes did not survive his rage that only lessened when Vaire gave him his repaired clothing.  
He slammed his hammer down on a cluster of daisies "AND when will he be back?"}   
  
  
Her head was pounding and her mouth tasted as though she had sampled some of the troll's foul stew; rope bit into her wrist as she tried to bring a hand up to touch the wetness on her cheek.   
"What the-" she cracked an eye and pain lanced through her skull as she tried to lift her head from the hard surface she rested on "Fuck!"   
"Oh looks like our little guest is waking up finally. Korvin son of Marvin you are very lucky this day."   
"Not that lucky! Look at what she did to my hand!" Korvin cried, his voice laced with pain and a couple octaves higher.   
"You deserved it. Did you think the tales of her actions were false? She is an amazing Halfling."   
Slowly she cracked both eyes open and while her head still throbbed she could see a little through the veil of her lashes.   
_Wait a minute I know that voice.  
  
Could it really be?  
  
_ She slowly turned her head and came to the realization that she was laying on a cot in what appeared to be a room long forgotten if the amount of cobwebs hanging from the ceiling was anything to go by. The other dwarves were all stationed by the door except for Destin who was sitting in a chair near her, Korvin who was crouched on the floor holding his poorly wrapped hand and softly sobbing, and in the other chair sat Thorin III Stonehelm, Dain Iron-foot's son.  
A small jerk told her that her feet were also tied to the wobbly cot frame and despair began to grow in her heart as she pulled only to feel the rope bite into her wrist but not give in the slightest.   
"Do not think you are going to escape, Bluebell. I know you're awake you might as well be social."   
_Do I do as he says or pretend to lose consciousness again?  
_  
_If I stay awake I might be able to learn why they want me._  
  
_If I pretend unconscious they might leave and I can try to escape.  
  
_ A hand on her sore cheek answered the debate for her causing her eyes to fly open at the sudden pain. Thorin's muddy brown beard felt rough like burlap against the exposed skin of her chest and throat; he leaned to close to her face she tempted to try and bite his nose. There was a spark of madness hiding there in his little mud colored eyes and the Baggins' side of her brain spoke up telling her it was rude to bite people especially crazy people that have tied you up.   
"There's those beautiful green eyes." he cooed patting her bruised face "It's so nice of you to join us **Mizim**."   
_Be polite.  
_  
_Be polite!_  
  
_BE POLITE!_ Her father's voice shouted in her head.   
"Of course Thorin." she gave him a brittle smile "What are _we_ doing?"   
He stood up with a huff "Why it's just a meeting of like minded fellows discussing when to return to the Iron Hills and how to sneak you out of the Mountain!"   
She quickly schooled her face to hide the shock his words caused and quickly asked "What are you talking about... dear?"   
Destin snapped his head to look at her with a brow quirked and she tried very hard to set him on fire with her mind.   
Thorin began to pace "I am trying to plan our return trip home sweet heart. But I know your brothers will not let you go and you've proved very uncooperative so I needed help. These fine gentledwarves were more than happy to help bring you to me and now we will be leaving. As soon as I can get your share of the gold from the penny pincher Gloin anyways and find a way to sneak you out of here."  
  
  
  
Gandalf had never ridden so hard before as he pushed Shadowfax up the slope to the gates of Erebor; it had taken Manwe some time to find Gandalf in the archives of Gondor and time seemed to slip through his fingers as he raced to his little friend's aid.  
"Just a little further my friend and then you can rest for a long time." he whispered in the horse's ear as he leaned over the flank.   
The dwarrow manning the gate were only too happy to take his mount and direct him to where the Company was gathered trying to figure out what had happened to their Burglar.   
Relief was evident on the faces of her brothers and Balin who was holding a very unhappy Dwobbit.   
"Thank Mahal you are here, Tharkun!" Thorin declared clasping forearms with the wizard "Bluebell is missing and we have no idea where she could have gone!"   
Gandalf sat his pointed hat on Thorin's desk before motioning to Kili "Yes I know. First things first run to the kitchen and get a pitcher of the freshest milk they have."   
Kili froze before looking at his brother and they both at him "Milk?" they asked in unison.   
Gandalf tugged his beard "Yes milk. Freshest they have. Would be better if you milked the cow or goat yourself but it should suffice."   
"Wha-" Kili's question was cut short as Oin cuffed him up the back of the head shouting "YA DON'T QUESTION WIZARDS LAD!"   
Kili and Fili dashed from the room whispering speculations between them about what Tharkun could want the milk for.   
"Would you like some whiskey or are you waiting for the milk?" Thorin asked trying to keep a straight face.   
"The milk is for the baby!" he laughed.   
The tension that had been choking the room broke as laughter erupted and Gandalf sank into the only Man sized chair in the room "Now that's taken care of tell me what you know."   
They all fell silent and the only sound was the whimpers from Rosie.   
"Erm Bluebell disappeared yesterday late afternoon. She left to get a tea tray and some snacks from the kitchen and we haven't seen her since." Thorin's deep voice filled the room and Gandalf could see how incredibly worried all of them were.   
He leaned back in the chair and took the glass that Thorin offered him.   
After taking a sip he asked the group "Are there any even faint ideas of where she might have gone? Or what could have happened?"   
Dori stepped forward from where he'd been in the shadows with Bofur "Nori found some blood droplets in the hall outside the kitchen door. He's out talking to his network right now."   
"Oh!" Ori popped up from his spot on the couch "She's had an awful lot of suitors lately that we've had to run off."   
That made him pause "Suitors, really?"   
Ori nodded enthusiastically "Oh yes they've been everywhere. Thorin even had to assign her some guards because they wouldn't leave her be."   
"Has anyone questioned her guards?"   
Everyone froze before Thorin ran to the door and threw it open scaring his own guards so bad one of them dropped their pole arm. "Find me Lady Bluebell's guards and bring them back here!"   
"Yes Sir!"   
  
The guards returned shortly with one of Bluebell's trio, and the news that one was missing, and the other found dead in the barracks.   
Astrid looked terrified as Thorin's guards forced her to sit in the chair in the middle of the room and she began to shake as Thorin loomed over her, blue eyes crackling as he glared down his regal nose at her.   
"Where is Lady Bluebell?" he roared suddenly making almost everyone in the room jump.  
Astrid's amber eyes bugged "Wha- what your highness? Is- is she not in her rooms?"   
Dori moved to stand beside Thorin and in that minute Gandalf could see how he kept his brothers mostly in line. The silver haired tailor was impressive in his anger and the poor female guard shrank down in her seat as far as she could.   
"No she isn't. Now where is my sister?"   
The blond dwarrowdam took a moment to pull herself together before addressing Dori apparently deciding he was easier to face than the King.  
"I don't know. I had a date last night and Korvin told me that he and Dag would cover it then this morning I found a note on my door saying that Lady Bluebell was having day off and didn't need us." her gaze never wavered and the words held the ring of truth.   
Poor thing almost wet her pants as the door flew open with Kili announcing "We have the milk! Uncle we learned how to milk a goat! Did you know you can't milk a ram?"   
  
  
She was so deep in the Mountain Bluebell could not tell what time it was for anything but she did know that she was hungry, her back was sore from laying there for so long and her thigh was throbbing three beats faster than her heart.   
Thorin III had started raving about Bluebell being coy and how she wasn't fooling anyone with all the nonsense about Dwalin coming back. He had professed his love to her and when she said nothing in return he began to hurl threats and insults at her before Destin had coaxed him from the room. The dynamic between Destin and Thorin was confusing the more she thought about it. She had thought Thorin was the mastermind but the way Destin handled him it almost seemed as if he was figurehead and Destin was the one driving everything.   
The room had slowly became cold as one by one the torches went out and soon she was in complete darkness straining to hear if they had abandoned her or just trying to teach her a lesson.   
The cot rocked and groaned as she struggled against the rope and she felt the skin at her wrist and ankles slowly chafing away; soon everything felt wet and she knew that she was bleeding from yet another spot. Tears soon joined the fray as she realized the ropes weren't giving at all and she was out of luck.   
A soft creak came from the direction she thought the door was in and she lifted her head straining with everything in her to see something anything of what might be happening by her feet. Her heart stopped as her ears picked up the soft tap of someone trying to tiptoe into the room and her scream died as a rough hand slide over her lips.   
"Shhhhh it's me!" Nori hissed next to her ear; he gave her a minute and once her breathing slowed he whispered "I'm going to take my hand away. Do not scream there are dwarves within ear shot."   
She nodded violently letting out a slow breath as he pulled his hand from her mouth.   
The rasp of cloth on cloth told he was moving down the length of the cot and she tried to see him cursing the poor night vision of Hobbits.   
"What are you doing here?"   
"Rescuing my sister" he scoffed as she felt his fingers tracing the ropes tying her down.   
"How did you find me?"   
She could almost hear the wink in his answer "Trade secret can't tell ya love."   
  
Nori made short work of the ropes holding one hand and moved onto the other cursing and then marveling at the workmanship that went into the bindings.   
"Think they would mind me taking these with us? It's some good rope." he asked her in a pseudo-whisper.   
A voice that Bluebell was coming to hate answered the spy's question from the door "Go right ahead son of Vori."   
The sudden light from the open door blinded her and when she could finally see Destin was beside her with his dagger at her throat again while Nori stood flanked by two more dwarves.   
"Make one move Master Spy and I slit her throat."  
Bluebell made a grab for the dagger and felt the blade bite into her neck again while Destin tsked her.   
"Do you just not care if you see your daughter again? That's where Thorin is right now. Trying to get your little half breed." the disgust in Destin's voice was thick.   
"No. He'll never get anywhere near her. I know Dori will protect her with his life." she poured as much confidence into her voice as she could while her heart raced and she felt blood begin to seep down her neck.   
_Dwalin, Thorin, someone where are you?  
  
Yavanna protect my daughter!_  
  
  
{Dwalin was sure he'd paced a rut in the ground around Irmo's cauldron waiting for Manwe to return from who knows where.   
Yavanna had stopped telling him what was happening after Dain's brat was revealed to be the one that had kidnapped Bluebell and was apparently infatuated with her.   
_How could this be happening?  
  
Where is Manwe? _  
  
_What if I'm too late to save her?  
  
_ He paused as Nessa squealed "The dwarf with the star hair has found her and he's trying to free her!"   
"Nori, son of Vori" he supplied taking a step towards his stump step before hesitating "That's one of her brothers."   
"How does he keep his hair in that shape?" asked Vana patting her own golden locks that held a crown of sunflowers.   
"Lots of braiding and I think a little hope." he laughs "Plus he hides lock picks and slim knives in it so that helps."   
"Knives in his hair?" Orome looked intrigued and stroked his short beard as though considering hiding some there.   
"Oh poo that awful Destin is back." pouted Este while it sounded like the gentle Nessa was muttering curses under her breath.   
"No! Bloody dammit!" shouted Yavanna looking like she wanted to flip the cauldron over.   
Part of him wanted to know what had happened but the other part of him was terrified that the Earth Queen was going to tell him that Bluebell and her brother had just perished.   
"MANWE! MANWE YOU NEED TO COME BACK THIS INSTANT!" she shouted at the sky and Dwalin almost felt like laughing at her until the wind picked up, swirling around him and tugging at his fur cloak.   
_Will the King of the Valar actually answer her?  
  
_ Silence filled the glade and Dwalin felt like his nerves were going to snap as Bluebell's prayer rang straight through his soul.   
"I am here. Dwalin, son of Fundin it is time."}

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dream sex scene was influenced by the song Wild Horses- The Sundays.  
> The song Dwalin is singing is She was the Prize ~ Gaelic Storm. Note: I did tweak the words a bit and I left out a verse. It's a great song and they are an amazing band. If you get the chance to see them live I highly suggest it.
> 
>  
> 
> Any language mistakes are my own. I found my Khuzdul mostly on Tumblr and a few on wordpress. Welsh came from Google translate mostly. 
> 
> Thutrel~ Star of all Stars.  
> Bunmel~ Beauty of all Beauty  
> llygaid golau lleuad~ Moonlight eyes (welsh)  
> Azrali zi du namrul~ I want to fuck you.  
> kurdel~ Heart of all Hearts.  
> azaghâlithûh~ Warrior that is young. (I figure everyone is young compared to the Valar.)  
> Rhyfelwr tywyll~ Dark Warrior (welsh)  
> Kaminzabduna~ Yavanna (Queen of the earth)  
> Khebabmudtu~ Heart Forge.  
> melysio~ sweetling. (welsh)  
> Sharbragân~ rude term for a Hobbit.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dwalin is back and he's pissed that someone would think to take what is his.  
> Hell is about to break lose in the Lonely Mountain.  
> ** warning now for bloodshed and cursing***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for being so patient and leaving such sweet comments during my hiatus.   
> Ran into some belt tightening times and one of the things we cut was the internet. I'm so happy to be able to update this finally!

Dwalin looked  the Valar stood in a ring around him and for a moment he knew he was going to miss them but his heart was ready to be with his family.   
_Please use that diplomacy that I know I taught you and say something decent_ Balin's voice pleaded with him making him so homesick it hurt.   
  
He bowed low to the group while uttering "Thank you for saving my life. I know it was not easy and that I was not the most gracious guest but I truly cannot thank you enough for saving me."   
Yavanna stepped forward and pulled him into a tight hug "You are welcome Dwalin, son of Fundin. I apologize for meddling in your life. From now on I shall endeavor to take more of a spectator stance." she winked at him.   
Mahal stepped up beside his wife and held out his large hand "It has been a pleasure my son to be able to visit with you. I can only hope that the others are similar to you. Treat your wife well and everything will be alright."   
Orome bowed to him "Safe travels."   
Tulkas grabbed him up in a hug that felt as though it popped every vertebra in his spine "It has been a treat wrestling with you Dwalin! Have a good life with that spitfire of yours."   
Nessa grabbed his hands and spun them in a circle "It was lovely having you here. Safe travels."   
Irmo bowed and his wife Este waved with a little smile where they stood in a shadow.   
Vana handed him a single white rose "Give this to your soon to be wife. It will never fade. Safe travels."   
Vaire floated to him and held his hands in hers "You shall have a long boring life with your wife and have many children. BUT not too boring you know how hobbits are" she smiled down at him "Enjoy it Dwalin, you deserve it. Safe Travels."   
Ulmo bowed while Varda shooed everyone back into position before Manwe spoke his voice sounding like a whirlwind "Son of Fundin close your eyes and take a deep breath. When you next exhale you will be where you need to be."   
He straightened his back and looked at the group " **Tan menu selek lanun naman."**

  
  
Power swirled around him and the Valar vanished from sight in a kaleidoscope of colors before he snapped his eyes shut; Dwalin felt as though he was caught in a whirlpool as water sprayed him and the wind pulled at his clothing, he could smell flowers and growing things, there was laughter in the wind as well and he felt solid rock under his feet. The landing jolted   
"DWALIN!"   
Head still spinning he was crushed on all sides by warm bodies shouting his name and when he opened his eyes Thorin's blue ones were looking right back.   
" **M** **urkhûn"** Thorin knocked their foreheads together and Dwalin savored the contact with his kinsman.   
Balin's voice was raspy as he pulled Dwalin around into a hug of his own **"Nadadel I thought we had lost you,"** his shoulders began to shake and Dwalin felt tears of his own stinging his eyes as he hugged his older brother to him.   
They hugged for a long time before Balin drew back and leveled a finger at him "Don't ya ever do that to me again!"   
Wet chuckles came from those around them and one by one they all stepped forward to welcome him back with strong handshakes and many forehead knocks.   
He took a moment to soak in being back in Erebor and then realized that the Princes were surprisingly absent as he looked around the room.   
Thorin looked like he had swallowed something wrong when Dwalin asked where they were "Bluebell is missing, and Fili and Kili are-"   
As if on cue the blond prince dashed in sounding like he was gagging followed more sedately by Kili who looked to be holding something and Dis who was trying very hard to not laugh.   
"I told you not to do that Fee! I had just fed her!" Kili reprimanded his older brother though his eyes twinkled with mirth. Dwalin wasn't sure he'd ever seen Kili so reserved and calm; he began to wonder if the Valar had sent him to a different Erebor.   
The look Fili gave his younger brother should have killed him and then Bofur leaned closer to the Crown Prince "What is in your mustache? It looks like clotted cream."   
"Oh it's something worse than clotted cream!" howled Dis no longer able to contain her laughter as her oldest son turned a shade of green and went running to the bathroom.   
Kili sat sedately on the couch and shifted what he was holding to his shoulder to begin patting it's back.   
_What in Eru's name is he coddling?  
_  
_Did he get a pet?  
_  
He jerked his head towards Kili with a question in his eyes and all Thorin did was smile with a shake of his head.  
"My **namadinùdoy** has been put on babysitting duty since they decided to get themselves lost while they were trying to help look for signs of Bluebell. Do not worry though Dis has been close at hand the whole time." Thorin informed him with a pat on the back.   
"Why would I be worri- No" his question ended in a whisper as he neared the couch to look closer at what the brunette prince was cuddling.   
"Here, Nadad take my seat." Dis pushed his unresponsive body into sitting next to the young prince "Kili,  **Dushin-Mizim** give her to her Adad."   
  
Dwalin didn't want to breath, did not want to shift even a little despite one of his hidden daggers poking him in the ass cheek; he just wanted to stay like this forever.   
Kili had gently placed the bundle in his arms "here like this, support her little head" he situated Dwalin's big hands around her little body after Dis took his knuckle dusters while tsking that he couldn't wear those while holding a baby and then everyone seemed to fade to the background as he looked upon his daughter for the first time.   
She was perfect.   
He had heard so many fathers proclaim that about their offspring and he had always dismissed it as them growing soft but staring down at her chubby cheeks and little bow shaped mouth, the dark curls that lifted up like duckling fluff and the black fans of her eyelashes he knew what they were talking about.   
His eyes burned and his throat felt tight as he watched her dream, her little eyebrows twitched and a small smile produced a dimple in her right cheek just like her Amad. The baby wiggled a little and when she opened her mouth in a tiny yawn he thought his heart might burst from the rush of emotions.   
"I hate to be the one to ruin the moment but Bluebell and Nori are still missing." Tharkun's grave tone drew him back to present and he looked up at the grey wizard. It was clear that Tharkun did not want to cut short the reunion but they both knew that Bluebell might not have much time left in the Mountain if Stonehelm did not kill her first.   
"I know."   
"You've been gone so long! How do you know anything?" blurted Kili earning a swat from Dis. Others whispered questions similar to the Prince but the look Dis sent them silenced it; he could see Ori creeping closer with his sketch pad out and graphite behind his ear. The familiar scratching of him either writing or drawing filtered into the background and brought memories of the journey that got them all here. It seemed so very long ago.   
He shift Rosie closer and placed a kiss on her little brow "The Valar see all and while I was in the Garden's Yavanna and Mahal were gracious enough to keep me informed."   
Oin dropped his horn with a clang and Thorin almost spit out his mouthful of wine. Kili was at Dwalin's feet in a flash looking so young it was almost painful for him to meet Kili's excited gaze.   
"You met **Kaminzabduna** and **Mahal**?" the wonder in his eyes pulled at something in his old warrior's soul and he found himself smiling at the youngster.   
"Oh aye lad and I will tell you about the Garden's of Lorien once things have calmed down" he turned to the others "Now I think I have information that you lot do not but tell me what you know."   
  


Nori was shackled at the head of the cot Bluebell was tied to and he was pissed off. The urge to fight back had fled him when that  **bin’adad's** blade had bit into his sister's neck making her whimper; he had dropped his daggers and stood stock still as they bound him while watching the blood pool at the base of her throat. Thankfully she had told him it stopped shortly after they placed him by her head; new torches were lit and when he saw the state she was in he let loose a string of the vilest curses he could think of while thanking Yavanna Bluebell didn't understand that much Khuzdul. He called them everything but a milk cow and it was very obvious that he'd hit a nerve with a few of them when he'd called them  **binakrâg varudhghalut mahzâyungâl(s).  
** The blow to his temple that rocked his world was the other sign that he really pissed them off. Destin the apparent leader when Stonehelm wasn't around had handled the slurs with a bemused smile but when the others began to bristle in anger he had given them permission to silence him... temporarily.   
It was dark when he came to again, by the smell of things the torches had long since burned out and the room had taken on the same damp chill like when he had first found it. The right side of his face pulsed and he could feel something dripping from his nose onto his hands, one eye seemed to be sealed shut though it was more likely swollen shut from the dull ache he felt behind his eyeball.   
The wall was closer than he'd been expecting as it connected with the unforgiving stone with a solid 'thunk'.   
"Owwww Fuzak." he groaned looking around the room with his good eye.   
"Nori? Nori, are you alright?" Bluebell's panicked voice made him cringe.  
"Aye **Namad** , I'm fine. Are you alright? Did those Orc fuckers do anything to you?" he could make out the outline of her prone figure next to him but the pain in his head made it hard for him to make out details.   
The cot frame vibrated as she shook her head "No they didn't do anything else to me. I was so worried when you didn't come to right away!"   
"I'm sorry Bluebell. I did not mean to scare you. I'll figure out a way to get us out of here."   
There was a hitch to Bluebell's voice when she answered him after several long minutes "I know you will... But Nori if you can't save me please save yourself and get Rosie as far from here as possible. You cannot let Thorin get her!"   
He wanted to argue, to insist that he would and could save them both but the realization that she might know something he did not trickled down his spine like rain water. Nori found himself agreeing with his sister that if nothing could be done to save her he would make sure to save himself and get his niece as far from the reach of Thorin Stonehelm as he could.   
Conversation ebbed away and soon they sat silent in the darkness each forming their own plans and sending up their own prayers for a rescue they thought wasn't coming. 

Destin had thought he could support whatever ideology his Lord Thorin came up with and that he could get their men to follow suit as well.   
Now?   
Well now he wasn't so sure. Stonehelm had returned to the hidden rooms in the center of the Mountain in a frothing rage. It took longer than he or Korvin cared to admit to make sense of their Lord's ravings as he switched between Khuzdul and Westron at whim. From what they gathered he had been denied access not only to Bluebell's rooms but also to the Thorin's rooms and Office where it seemed most of the Company was still holed up together and he had been denied entrance to the Treasury. Gloin's wife had brandished her hammer at him with Gimli supporting his mother with his ax when Stonehelm had tried to cajole and then force his way into the vast room.   
"I couldn't get her belongs! And they wouldn't let me anywhere near her brat! Dis actually laughed in my face when I told her that I was great with babies! LAUGHED. AT. ME!" he roared throwing a chair across the room narrowly missing Merkin who gave the ranting noble a dark glare.   
Destin cleared his throat as he shared a look with Korvin "Well have you ever actually been around Bluebell's little one, Sire? They aren't likely to hand her over to a stranger."   
Thorin stilled in his pacing, running a hand over his coarse beard "You're right! I've never been around the little half breed! But-but I can change that and then they'll happily hand her over for me to deal with!"   
Korvin froze where he was sharpening his dagger and the other dwarrow in the room all narrowed their eyes at Destin who if he was honest was beginning to get a sinking feeling in his stomach. He studied Thorin and looked back at Korvin, the ring in his eyebrow bobbed as he jerked his head in the inter-lingual sign of 'you ask him' to which Korvin shook his head so fast he smacked himself in the eye with one of his own beads.   
"You!" he mouthed jabbing a finger on his uninjured hand at Destin.   
With a roll of his eyes Destin mouthed back "fine" before clearing his throat again to gain Stonehelm's attention "Ahem Sire, just for the sake of curiosity what do you mean deal with Bluebell's daughter?"   
If you asked any of the others that were there once it was all done with they would swear to you that Thorin's eyes had shone red as he declared "Why kill the little beastie of course!"  
A pebble could have dropped in the perfect silence of the room before Korvin blurted out "Surely you're joking! You can't seriously mean to kill an infant, milord!"   
The pressure built till Destin thought his ears were going to pop as Thorin drew himself up to his full height "Absolutely. No bride of mine shall care for any offspring besides the ones I have upon her."    
Farrow stepped forward his face redder than Destin had ever seen "But the lass is half dwarf! We do not kill infants and children especially not of our own blood! All children are precious in the eyes of **Mahal!** "  
  


{"Let me smite him!" Yavanna shrieked as she made to plunge her hands into the cauldron as though to strangle Thorin III herself.   
Mahal hauled her back by her waist "Peace, wife! He will get his comeuppance! I swear I will not let him get anywhere near the baby."   
Nessa and Vaire popped up beside her and walked her away from the cauldron whispering to her that everything will be alright and how about they have some tea.   
Tulkas glowered down at the image of Stonehelm "Ya know I could hit Erebor just right and collapse that part."   
Manwe pinched his eyes shut with a hand on the bridge of his nose "That would kill everyone, idiot."   
Tulkas seemed to swell before their eyes "Idiot? At least I am trying to come up with an idea instead of standing there looking constipated!"  
The ground shook and the wind began to whip around them as the pair argued; Mahal kept one eye open for a twister and the other he watched everything shift and unfold before him.  
"Both of you SHUT UP!" he shouted "I think a solution is about to present itself"}  
  


  
Dain Ironfoot, Lord of the Iron Hills had thought he'd seen just about everything in his days but there was nothing that compared to seeing Dwalin sitting in Thorin's chambers holding a baby he'd had with a hobbit. A Hobbit that Dain was shocked to hear was missing and you could have knocked him over with a feather when they informed him that his own son had been the one to take her.   
The iron joint of his knee squeaked softly as he sank into the arm chair Thorin held out of him and he readily took the glass of whiskey tossing back half the fiery liquid before his cousin had stepped away.   
The occupants of the room were silent while they let him digest everything that had just been thrown at him.   
Thoughts raced one after another as he tried to find the point where he'd lost track of his son. Thorin III had been acting odd after the Battle of Five Armies but he had assumed it was due to exhaustion and battle fatigue. He recalled when Thorin had met Bluebell for the first time and yes his lad had acted odd but he'd assumed it was because most of his people had never seen a Hobbit before let alone a petite female one. Thorin had spoken of the Hobbitess on numerous occasions but Dain had been too busy helping with the rebuild and had not paid attention to what his heir was thinking.   
 _Mahal's ball did I really over look how fixated he was on her?_  
  
I thought it was just intrigue since she had a half dwarf child! 

"Dwalin I am so sorry that my lad has done this. I do not know how I missed the signs of his obsession." he rubbed rough hands over his face as he groaned.   
Dwalin's rough voice startled him with the sincerity that it held "I do not blame you, Dain. Thorin Stonehelm is a grown lad, battle tested and all. There was no reason for you to follow his every action while you lended us a hand."   
Dain studied his old friend and liked what he saw; gone was the impulsive, violent tempered dwarf and in his place was a steady, clear minded, practical warrior.   
"Yer a good lad, Dwalin. Now what do we do about my idiot heir?"   
Dwalin's silver eyes glowed molten in the fire light "Now we wait for him to slip up or Nori turns up." 

A slip up never came nor did Nori, son of Vori, instead they got their opening when Gandalf returned from the depths of the Mountain with a unfamiliar dwarf who was beside himself with the actions of his kin. 

The oak of the chair Dwalin stood behind groaned under his hands and when Farrow of the Iron Hills revealed that Stonehelm intended to kill Amethyst before taking Bluebell there was an audible snap as the wood gave way. Blood had slowly been leaving the elder dwarrow's face as he recounted everything to Thorin, Dain and Dwalin and when the wood broke he went as pale as sheet but he never wavered or faltered in his tale of watching Stonehelm's descent into madness.   
"When he stated that he intended to kill the wee lass that was when I knew I could no longer follow him. I know aiding him in kidnapping a female and holding her hostage means I'll be exiled but I swear on my Amad's stone I did not lay a hand on Lady Bluebell! That has all been that slimy Destin and Korvin, they're the ones that took her and they're the ones that tied up the spymaster." he nodded his grey head and crossed his arms over his barrel chests as he met Dwalin's gaze.   
Dwalin turned to Dain "You realize his life is forfeit now, Ironfoot?"   
There was pain in Dain's eyes as he closed them with a low sigh "Aye I know. There is no coming back from kidnapping a female and plotting to murder an infant. No one would let him leave Erebor alive and if he did make it back home they'd do worse than kill him."   
Thorin clasped his cousin by the shoulder in a surprising display of emotion "I am sorry, Cousin."   
Dain patter his hand "So am I, Thorin. So am I." 

Bluebell could tell something was happening when two guards stepped into her cell and shut the door. The sound of footsteps outside and her ears twitched as she picked up the faint sound of metal clanging and shouts.   
"Nori... NORI do you hear that?" she whispered loudly hoping her brother hadn't lost consciousness again; Korvin and Stonehelm had paid them a visit which ended with Korvin repeatedly punching Nori in the face while Stonehelm had tried to sweet talk her into going willingly with him to get Rosie. When she refused he'd backhanded her so hard she saw stars and knew that one of his rings had cut her cheek bone for sure.   
While lying there in the dark she had tried to calculate how long she'd been there and cataloged all her injuries. According to Nori when he had been captured they had been nearing on 3 days but now it all bled together into a endless cycle of pain and darkness. Her face felt tight and crusty from blood and tears, it hurt to swallow where her throat had been nicked but what worried her the most was her thigh. It felt hot and damp, when she tried to shift her leg the muscles spasmed and burned.   
"Dammit Nori something is going on!" she hissed not looking away from the guards that were fidgeting by the door.   
"W-what is it?" he croaked chains rattling as he shifted into reality.   
"There is something going on out there." she whispered.   
Tension seemed to fill the room as they both strained to hear what was happening, the guards looked young and Bluebell almost felt pity for them when they paled as the sounds grew closer. Everyone almost had a heart attack when the door burst open and for a second Bluebell thought it was Dwalin before her vision cleared and she saw that is Stonehelm. His eyes were wide with either panic or adrenaline, breath coming in great pants as he charged across the room to her cot.   
"They're coming, they're coming and my father won't stop them!" he almost whined under his breath as he sawed through the ropes holding her to the frame.   
"What are you doing? What's happening?" she gasped as he hauled her to her unfeeling feet only his rough grip on her elbows kept her from sinking right back to the cot.  
"They're getting closer! This won't do!" he snarled as he pulled her only for her knees to meet the floor in a jarring thud.   
"What are you doing? PUT ME DOWN!" she squealed as he tossed her over his shoulder before dashing from the room. The hall was chaos and she rubbed at her eyes with her still bound hands to clear them; she had the perfect view to see Thorin Oakenshield cutting down one after another of the guards that had helped torment her. Time slowed and her pulse raced in her ears when Dwalin came into view behind Thorin, Keeper and Grasper spinning through any that got too near the King.   
Pulling as a deep a lungful of air as she could get with the bouncing gait Stonehelm had she screamed "DWALIN!" as they went around a corner.   
  
Nori is a betting dwarf thru and thru but even he wouldn't have taken the odds on followed him straining to break his bonds after Thorin had run off with his sister. The sounds of battle seemed louder than ever with the door hanging off it's hinges and the young guards were long gone.   
Muscles screamed as he strained to pull the chains free of the metal loop in the floor, blood ran down his wrists as he shouted in pain while the metal began to screeched under the pressure.   
There was signs of breakage in the links and he was cursing his tired body as he tried to find the strength to give it another go when a new form darkened the door.   
Destin.   
The desire to rip the limbs off the traitor had him straining and cursing as the other dwarf walked up to him.   
"Nori- NORI STOP! I'm here to help you!" Destin shouted as he held up his bare hands.  
"I don't need your kind of help you  **Algâbikûn!"** Nori snarled as he struggled "Once I get out these chains I am going to do everything to you that you did to my sister and then I'm going to send you to Mahal. Pray that he has mercy because I sure as hell won't!"   
Destin reached into his pocket and Nori burned with rage as he shouted "Oh big warrior you are! Came in here to kill the chained up dwarf, huh? How about you let me go and fight me like a true dwarf!"   
"If I was going to kill you don't you think I'd have done it already? Seriously and you call yourself a spymaster." Destin scoffed as he knelt to unlock Nori's chains, Nori was too stunned to have a retort. Wrapping a scrap of Bluebell's blanket around his bleeding wrist Nori mumbled his thanks before he began looking around the room.   
Destin threw his hands in the air "What in Mahal's name are you looking for?"   
"My weapons, thank you very much!" Nori snapped "I can't chase down Stonehelm bare handed with he has that fucking long sword, can I?"  
"HERE!" Destin tossed him a pair of daggers "Take a left and another left, you find them."   
  


Bluebell's cries echoed down the hall and urged him on like a siren's call dodging or cutting down any that got between them. Some of the guards had surrendered the moment they saw Dain but more than they had anticipated stepped up to replace them all because Stonehelm had promised them a share of Bluebell's gold.   
Thorin covered his back and Dain swung his hammer on one flank while Dori and Bofur covered the other, Ori with his slingshot and Kili with his bow covered the rear. Fili, Balin, Bifur, Dis, Gloin and his family were holed up in Dis's suite of rooms prepared to take on anyone that tried to come for Rosie; Bombur was in the kitchens preparing a celebratory feast and Oin was hiding in the wings ready for any injured.   
"GO Dwalin! We got this covered!" Thorin shouted over the din as he slashed another guard across the chest in a spray of blood.   
He shot a look to Dain who nodded and with a nod back he sprinted down the corridor after his One.   
Nori was leaning against the wall after the second turn, a hand pressed against his side in what Dwalin thought was a cramp until he saw the blood leaking between the star haired dwarf's fingers.  
"Bastard had back up hiding up here. Just winged me but I finished him." Nori grunted as Dwalin peeled his hand back to look at the wound.   
Korvin, one of Bluebell's guards was against the opposite wall staring at them with unseeing eyes, his chest and gut a wash of red against the grey stone.   
Emotions tore through him.   
Should he take Nori back to the others?  
Should he keep following Bluebell and Thorin?   
"Go after my sister, ya big oaf!" Nori gave a him a shove down the hall as he slid down the wall to sit "I'll wait here for you to bring her back."   
Nori didn't look alright sitting there holding his side together and Dwalin wasn't sure what Bluebell would do if he left her middle brother to die while he chased her.   
"Are ya sure? I should get you to Oin..."   
Nori waved him off "I'll be fine but Bluebell might not have much longer. Stonehelm is unhinged and dangerous. You have to save her." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dushin-Mizim~ Dark Jewel  
> Tan menu selek lanun naman~ May Your Forge Burn Bright.  
> Kaminzabduna~ Queen of the Earth.  
> binakrâg~ honorless   
> varudhghalut mahzâyungâl~ pig fuckers  
> Algâbikûn~ traitor


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things draw to close.   
> Will Dwalin make it in time to save Bluebell?   
> What is Stonehelm's end game?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your patience and not letting me forget about this fic.  
> Life has been hectic but slowing down now thankfully. Now to find better WIFI lol

Thorin Oakenshield stared at the carnage around him and shook his head. He had thought after the Battle of Five Armies it would be a long time indeed before he had bodies piled around him and he had never thought them to be the corpses of fellow dwarrow.   
Dain made a noise of disgust as he came to stand beside his cousin, wiping gore from his hammer with a scrap of what looked like someone's tunic.   
"I knew these men. They were good soldiers, fine dwarrow; some of them even have families back in the Iron Hills." Dain shook his red head "How am I going to tell their widows that they died for something so heinous in our eyes?"   
The look on Dain's face was one that Thorin knew well; it was the same look he had seen in the mirror when he had thought half the Company had perished fighting in a war that was his fault.   
He gripped Dain's armor clad shoulder "Tell them they were supporting your son doing what they thought was right. That he had promised them more than he should have to help him."   
"Sounds hollow but I suppose that would do, Cousin. Shall we follow my idiot offspring? Even with his life being forfeit I would be with him at the end."   
"Let's go." 

{Yavanna and the others watched as Dwalin stayed in pursuit of the pair as they careened through the Mountain. Most had been silent as the battle raged in the liquid in front of them but Nessa broke it when Dwalin found Nori in the hallway.   
"NO! Is he going to die? He cannot die!" she demanded looking to Mahal and Mandos anger taking the laughter from her eyes.   
The brothers shared a look before looking at their sister with a shrug "We do not know yet."   
Nessa slapped a hand against the lip of the cauldron "You cannot let him die! He has too much potential."  
She turned to where her sister and brother lounged in the shade "Este, please help him!" she beseeched.   
The Vala seemed to float as she came to stand beside Nessa, peering into the silvery depths of her husband's cauldron.   
"Is it night there?" }   
  


Bile burned in Bluebell's throat as Stonehelm's bouncing jog made her stomach burn and her headache. Glimpses of Dwalin and Nori were the only thing making her keep a tight grip on consciousness despite her voice giving out a while ago. Sightings of Nori had ceased a while ago and she tried to keep her panic down that something horrible had befallen her brother rather than he paired up with Dwalin.   
Thorin was muttering under his breath but it was all either nonsense or Khuzdul that she did not understand; the farther he raced into the darkness the more nonsensical his ramblings became. She had tried to engage him perhaps convince him to put her down so they could talk but he never broke stride or seemed to acknowledge her words.   
He slowed to walk and she tried to see where they were or what was ahead of them but her eyes saw nothing in the musty dimness around her  and she prayed Dwalin was close behind; Thorin finally uttered one sentence that she understood and her blood ran cold.   
"Can't keep her then sacrifice her."   
She wiggled hoping to remind him she was there "What do you mean sacrifice?" 

Dwalin was beginning to think they were going to burst through the far side of the Lonely Mountain before long as he pumped his legs down the twisting corridors. Every so often he would get a glimpse of Bluebell still slung over Stonehelm's shoulder and it was just enough to let him know he was on the right track.   
Bluebell had stopped screaming and he hoped that meant she was saving her breath and not unconscious.   
The hall reached a bend and a whisper "stop" made him slow his pace and peer around the corner. They were in the center of the Lonely Mountain for he could hear the low roar of River Running from far below them. In the gloom he could make out Thorin III standing at the edge of the walkway and for a moment his heart stopped when he realized Bluebell was no longer hanging over his shoulder!   
A soft sound stopped the rage that was taking over him and her small body stepped out from behind Thorin's.   
Her voice was so soft and sweet as it drifted to him "What are you talking about?"   
Thorin's voice held an edge that made Dwalin's nerves go up another notch "If you cannot be mine than I shall give you back to Yavanna."   
Bluebell took one and then another hesitant step away from Stonehelm "But that is madness. I- I will go with you as long as you leave Dwalin be."   
Stonehelm looked down at her and Dwalin could tell she had surprised the great bloody psychopath and for a heartbeat it looked as though he believed her.   
His gauntlet covered hand shot out and gripped her upper arm, squeezing until she gasped in pain "How sweet that you would sacrifice yourself for your warrior." he sneered "YOU and I both know he would never rest till he rescued you from me. Plus there is still your daughter to deal with. I cannot leave that loose end either. No all of you must die if I can't have you."   
Bluebell pulled against his grip her loose hair swinging with the effort "Thorin, please, let me go and we can go to the Iron Hills. I will stay with you just leave Dwalin and my daughter out of this!"   
A soft sound like a twig snapping was the only answer as she bit back a shriek of pain. 

"What is happening?" a soft voice whispered next to Dwalin's ear.   
"Fuck me- THORIN?" he hissed spinning with his dagger out only to see his King, his best friend standing there with his hands up. Behind him ranged Dain who was so pale his beard and mohawk looked the same shade as blood, Kili was behind him with Bofur.  
Thorin Oakenshield gave him a small apologetic smile and Dwalin responded with a rude hand gesture.   
Dwalin resorted to Inglishmek to keep Stonehelm from hearing them  **What are you doing here?  
** Dain was the one to answer him **I needed to see my boy before he died.  
What is going on? Why are you peeking around corners? **Thorin asked him.   
He rolled his eyes  **Thorin III has Bluebell at the edge of the walkway about River Running. He keeps talking about killing her since he cannot have her. She's been trying to talk him out of it to save me and Rosie but he insists we all must die.  
** The look of sadness in Dain's eyes pulled at Dwalin's heart before the old warrior stood **"Perhaps I can get through to him."**  
  
  
Bluebell had been prepared she thought for many outcomes most of which resulted in her pseudo- slavery to Stonehelm to save everyone else. She had not however anticipated Dain Ironfoot walking around the corner soon followed by Thorin Oakenshield, Dwalin, Kili and Bofur.   
Dain's voice sounded rougher than usual as he called out to his son "Gultalut, my son, what are you doing?"   
Emotions ran across Thorin's face at the sound of his father's voice and for a moment Bluebell thought she saw a crack running through his madness but when he turned to face the group it was gone.   
"Adad what are you doing here? Why did you come?"   
Anger was bringing color back to Dain's face and the others behind him all drew to their full height.   
"I came to see just how much of a  **binakrâg dalat** you had become." Dain growled.   
Shock broke the mask Stonehelm was wearing "Honorless, me? How can I be honorless?" he cried.  
Thorin stepped forward when the words seemed to escape Dain "Are you seriously asking this? You have kidnapped a Dam, a nursing mother, you attempted to take her wealth for yourself and you were planning on killing her child! I, Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the Mountain, hereby find you guilty of kidnapping, forced imprisonment and, attempted murder of an infant and the Royal Spymaster. As our customs her One will be executioner." Thorin stepped back behind his cousin and Dwalin stepped towards Stonehelm with Grasper and Keeper at his sides.   
Panic was clear on his face now as Stonehelm looked to his father and Dain would not meet his eyes, Dwalin's glinted like polished steel in the dim light and Bluebell had hope again that perhaps Thorin would give up. She held her arm close to her body and tried to ignore the throbbing where he had broken it.   
 _If I stay quiet he might forget I'm here. Yavanna help me use the old ways to vanish in plain sight._  
A warm breeze let her know Yavanna was with her but before she could try to will herself forgotten she was jerked back in front of Thorin III, a small gasp of pain slipping out.   
"Don't come any closer or I will kill her." his voice rang in the darkness as he wrapped a hand around her throat.   
Dwalin stilled a few feet from them, so close she could have crossed the distance in two steps, close enough she knew he could end this with an ax if she wasn't in the way. A glance behind her showed that they were right at the crumbly edge of the walk way and a plan began to form.   
Green eyes locked with silver as she swallowed "Rosie?"   
Dwalin's dark eyebrows rose "Safe. Dis and Fili have her."   
  
Dwalin could see the gears turning in Bluebell's eyes; they had fluttered shut with relief when he told her where Rosie was and that she was safe.   
"She's with the Princess? Good I was hoping to pay her a visit before I left this stupid Mountain." Stonehelm drawled next Bluebell's pointed ear.   
They snapped open and there was a fire in them he had not seen since the first battle with Azog.   
Her voice cracked "Dwalin do you remember when the spiders attacked and I was with the midwife?"   
"Aye..."   
Her eyes held him, telling him everything she couldn't seem to put into words in the time they had; her small chest expanded and she dropped to her knees right as Grasper came whistling to sink into Thorin's chest catching a bit of her curls. The mail under Thorin's jerkin was no match to the edge Dwalin kept on his axes nor the force he put behind it; the crunch of metal and bone seemed to echo through the corridor.   
Stonehelm's eyes blew wide and blood bubbled from his lips.   
"Hhhhnnng Nooooo" he gurgled as he dropped to his knees his eyes falling on Bluebell still kneeling "YOU!"  
With what they can only figure was the last of his strength Thorin backhanded Bluebell... right over the edge of the walkway and into River Running below.   
  
Only Thorin grabbing the back of his armor stopped him from going off the edge of the walk way after her in that instant "WAIT YOUR WEAPONS!"   
He quickly shed his armor down to his quilted under tunic and kept only a dagger in the small of his back.   
The King's eyes were wide "Are you sure you want to do jump in there?"   
Dwalin tapped his forehead against his oldest friend's "I have to. She's my One."   
  
  
{Saplings sprang up around the cauldron as Yavanna screamed watching Bluebell fall.   
"Ulmo quickly! What can we do?" Mahal demanded of the water Vala.    
Ulmo watched the little Hobbit hit the rushing water, his hair mirroring the dark swirls that she fought; his crown glinted in the moonlight as he thought.   
"Hobbits are not the best in the water so if you don't mind... HURRY UP!" Yavanna barked at him.   
"How are Dwarves in the water?" he asked his voice sounding like rain.   
They watched Dwalin dive after her and tracked them till he grabbed her, pulling her into a bear hug protecting her from the rocks with his body.   
"Adequate." answered Mahal.  
"Let use some air bubbles to cushion them and I can increase the water speed to get them out of the caverns quickly." Ulmo waved a hand over the shimmering liquid "River running does surface near the kitchens right?"   
Mahal nodded with his arm wrapped around Yavanna's shoulders as she wept.   
"Manwe!"   
The Wind-King drifted down "Yes?"   
Ulmo didn't look up from where he was trying to protect the pair in the water "Can you have Olorin get them where the river surfaces near the kitchens?"   
"Of course."}   
  
  
 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations...  
> gultalut~ Tiny Boar  
> binakrâg~ honorless   
> dalat~ slug

**Author's Note:**

> I have adjusted their ages to suit myself.  
> Bluebell is 39 instead of 50 because I want the freshness to her that isn't there with middle age. As of now I'm not fiddling with the ages of the Company so they will be even more overprotective of our feisty Bluebell. 
> 
> I loved the idea of Bluebell having more expressive ears like the awesome Bella in the amazing Fic Kintsukuroi by NightAuthor.  
> Its a smashing read that I highly suggest.


End file.
